The Origin of Grey
by DarkPhoenix2002
Summary: With the power to destroy entire civilizations locked up in her mind, Many may think teenager, Jean Grey, is a living time bomb, but not Professor Xavier. Follow Jean's journey from the time her powers blossomed to the battle that not only tests her powers but her trust in herself and her friends.
1. Prologue

**disclaimer: I do not own Jean Grey or any of the X-Men. They are all owned by Marvel, I'm just "borrowing" them to write this fic.**

"Hey, wait up!" Annie yells from behind me.

The bottoms of my sneakers slap the wet pavement as I race home. My best friend, Annie, trails behind me a few feet. I look over my shoulder, her blond hair, that was once tied tightly into a knot, is now flying freely behind her. Her book bag bouncing off her back as she runs.

I push my vibrant red hair from out of my face. The rain water makes the strands stick to my forehead and neck.

I stop at the busy intersection of Albany. Annie comes up behind me, "hey," she huffs, "you're fast."

I smile as I situate the strap of my book bag.

We wait a little while for the red hand to disappear and the green person to appear. Awhile ago Annie and I named the green person Bob. I don't know how that even got started, but now, everyday after school we wait for Bob.

Finally, Bob replaces the hand and the cars on the left side lane stop (there were no cars in the right lane).

Just as I'm about to cross, Annie drops her lunch box, causing a half-full pack of Goldfish crackers and an Apple to scatter onto the ground.

I bend down to pick up the closest cracker, "go ahead home, Jean, I can handle this."

"Are you sure?"

"I spill stuff all the time. You got to get home because your parent's are waiting." She gathers the goldfish and tosses them into her Winnie the Pooh lunch box.

"If you're sure." In reality, I'd rather stay and help Annie then go home to where my obnoxious Aunt is visiting for the weekend. However, I did have to get home. So, I give her a quick side-hug. I look both ways (even though Bob was still glowing) then cross the rain-covered street. Little did I know this would be the last time I see her alive.

I'm almost all the way to the other side of the street when Annie starts across. I step onto the sidewalk when I hear her scream and then a sickening, _Thump_.

I turn around to see a blue Jeep stopped in the middle of the road, a middle-age man steps out and looks down onto the pavement. I follow his gaze, dreading what I'll see.

I run out into the road, Annie is sprawled on the pavement. Her left leg is bent in a weird direction and a deep cut her head oozes blood.

The man is kneeling beside her when I get to Annie.

"Are you her friend?" He asks.

"Yes." I say, kneeling down next to her head. I grab her sticky hand.

"Jeannie?" She asks, her voice cracks.

The man dials 9-1-1. Then pain begins to bubble up in my leg, "you're going to be okay?" I say. Pain climbs its way up to my pelvis and belly, then increases greatly, causing me to double over. It reaches my arm and hand and I have to loosen my grip on Annie's hand.

Soon, I feel like I've been hit by a car myself. I close my eyes and feel tears swimming behind my lids. "You're going to be-" I lose consciousness, but Annie loses even more that day. Her life.

to be continued

 **Author's notes: what do you all think? Is it worth continuing? Like I said, this is a redo of The Marvel Girl Comic. The beginning is sort of the same (spoliers if you haven't read the Marvel girl comic or her wiki page sorry, LOL) but the story will be different. This is the way I wish the story had gone. The rest of the chapters will also be longer, but This was too important to add anymore onto it.**

 **So feel free to comment, give criticism, ask questions and suggest scenes. All of those things are welcome and greatly appreciated! Also, I was debating on writing this until I read, Sonofcoul27's story, X-Men Origins: Angel, so totally check that one out too if you want to read an awesome redo origin story about Warren Worthington III :).**

 **Ps. I will probably be posting the next chapter on Thursday or Friday. I'm just finishing up another fic that is posted on Mondays and Thursdays (it's called I am the whisperer if you want to check that one out too [little self-promotion there:)] ) that would be awesome! I want to get that one finished before I dive into this one. Anyway, see you all then! Bye**


	2. Chapter 1

I wake up in a hospital.

Several different tubes are stuck in my arms and an oxygen cannula is around my ears and in my nose. My head throbs so much, it makes it hard to even move, but nothing else hurts.

"Wh-what?" I mumble, my voice is nothing but a whisper, but it makes a nurse scream. "Oh, Jean, your awake! How do you feel? Do you know where you are? Do you know how old you are?"

I stare at the nurse for a moment as I try to figure out what's going on, Then I remember and my heart sinks.

"I feel okay, except for my head," I lie. In reality, I felt terrible because I knew Annie was gone, I just didn't know for how long.

"Okay," The nurse nods, she is obviously trying to make it up to me for screaming.

"I think I'm in a hospital." I look around, I'm in a hospital room for sure. The primary color walls and the picture of a cat with a cast on its paw makes me believe I'm in a children's hospital. A table at the foot of the bed is full of half-deflated "feel better soon" balloons, a few teddy bears, and flowers.

"Yes." The nurse pours water into a foam cup and hands it to me. I take a sip and I realize how dry my mouth is.

"And I'm ten."

"Correct. Do you remember why you're here?"

"I felt my Best friend's pain when she was hit by a car," I say it quickly so I don't have to feel the emotions that would normally come. I didn't want to cry in front of the nurse.

"You felt your Best Friend's pain?" She asks, raising her eyebrows so high that they disappear under her bangs.

"Yes."

"No, Sweetiepoo," I flinch at the nickname, I'm definitely in a child's hospital, " you were put in a coma due to shock of losing your friend, you didn't really feel her pain, necessarily." She begins taking out the Cannula out and a few of the tubes from my arms.

The door opens and a bald man in a wheelchair and pressed suit comes in. I recognized him as one of my dad's co-workers at Bard college, Professor Xavier, I think his name is.

"You can leave, now, Margaret," he says.

"Who are you?" the nurse asks.

"You can leave, now," He repeats.

The nurse's' eyes seem to go blank, and her face becomes expressionless, "Yes, Sir." She says in a monotone and pushes past him and goes out the door.

Professor Xavier rolls over to my bed, he stops to resituate a vase of flowers that were too close to the edge of the table, then says, "Hello Jean."

"Um, hi."

He smiles, "Is it safe to assume you remember me?"

"Yes, Sir," I say, I remembered him from when my dad introduced us to him once at Walmart, "Where are my parents?"

"They are on their way, but for now, I would like to talk to you."

I cock my head to one side as he takes a teddy bear from the table and puts it in my lap.

"How do you feel?"

"Okay."

"How do you really feel?"

His question makes me think, which makes my head hurt more. In reality, everything just seemed numb (except for my head that is) nothing seems real. This entire situation seems like a nightmare. There is still hope that maybe Annie did survive it. And maybe She's in the next room, wondering what how I'm doing.

"My head kinda hurts, but I guess I'm okay." I finally decide.

"You were right, Jean," The Professor says, "You did feel Annie's pain as she died."

The last word brings the tears.

"H-how?" I stammer.

"I am assuming you've heard of mutations?"

"Yes."

Professor Xavier goes on to tell me that, the same mutated cells that cause birthmarks or auburn hair, also cause something much bigger; The next stage in human evolution. At puberty (I flinched when he said that) if a person is under great stress, there is a chance that a very special gene, that he called the Xgene, will become active within a part of the human brain, multiplying it's way until the person is considered a mutant. Sometimes the mutation is small, such as a change in appearance, but most of the time the mutation is bigger, The person actually receives superhuman powers from the gene.

"And that is where you come in, Jean." He says.

"Huh?"

"Six months ago, when you sensed Annie's Pain-"

"Wait, six months ago? I've been here for six months?"

"Yes, Dear, I assumed the nurse had told you that. Anyway, six months ago, when you sensed Annie's pain, it wasn't just your imagination. You formed a telepathic bond with her as she died. You took on her pain by accident, The pain that killed her, nearly killed you, but somehow, you survived, it took six months for you to heal, but it you survived." He ends with a smile and wipes away a tear from my cheek with his thumb.

"I have powers?" I ask with disbelief.

"Yes, My dear, you do."

"Are you sure?" The question sounded stupid, but so did this entire situation.

Just then the door opens again, this time, my mom, dad, and sister come in. My mom begins to cry and runs to me, hugging my so tight I think she may break my spine. She didn't notice Professor Xavier, but my dad did.

"Charles, what are you doing here?" He asks, his gray eyes are wide with curiosity under his thick glasses. He puts his hands into his jean pockets.

"Well, John, I was just discussing the current situation with Jean," Professor Xavier turns to his co-worker and smiles.

"What current-" my dad freezes on the spot, "Not her, please damn no." his brow knits and his mouth is in a straight line. He swears again under his breath before my mom hurries over to him and puts her hand on his shoulder, "what's wrong?" She asks.

"What is it?" My dad asks, ignoring my mom's question and keeping his vision locked on the Professor's.

"It appears Telekinesis," Professor Xavier nods towards my mom, who stares at him with terror washed across her face. "Also some telepathy, that is how she made a connection with Miss Richardson."

Sara, my sister, chimes in, "We're going to take the word of this wacko that she has evolved into some type of...of metahuman?"

"Sara!" My mom scolds.

She blows hair out of her face and says, "I'm just saying."

"How did this happen?" My dad practically shouts.

Professor Xavier repeats what he told me. By the end of it, my mom has tears in her eyes again and my dad's face is so red, I'm afraid he may spontaneously combust.

Sara snickers, "I always thought Jean was weird."

My face flushes, "Sara!" I cry, then there is a pain in the front of my head, making me gasp. I cradle my head between my knees as I wait for the pain to pass. I hear panicked voices surrounding me, but it was like I was underwater. Then everything clears up.

I pull my head up. My mom has her hand on my back, but my dad is by Sara, who is in tears, with a blood dripping down from her nose.

I stare at my sister. She wipes her nose off on a tissue that my dad handed her and looks at me, horrorstruck. "You tried to kill me!" she yells.

"Now, Sara, let's not jump to conclusions, especially when your sister is so sick. Wait until she is cured," My dad says.

 _I'm sick?_ Is that what a mutation is, a disease?

"Your daughter is not ill, John," Professor Xavier says, "a mutation is not a disease, thus it can not be cured."

"She can't live like this for the rest of her life!" My mom sobs.

Professor Xavier frowns, "With some training, she will gain control of her powers, but she will have her powers forever."

"And how is she going to get training?"

"Well, if you bring her by my office, say every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, I can help her."

My dad hesitates, his eyes moisten, "Very well. I'll contact you when she is out of the hospital."

* * *

Two days after I woke up, I'm released from the hospital, and a week after that I have my first class with Professor Xavier.

"Jean, You're going to be late!" My mom yells up the stairs.

"My shirt's not dry yet!" I yell back. I stand in the laundry room in my training bra and a pair of shorts, watching my T-shirt go around in the dryer.

"Well, Hurry up, we have to leave."

"Yes mom!" as I watch the shirt tumble, I remember the car ride home from the hospital.

Everything bothered me. The feel of the seat belt slapping my shoulder in the wind, the sound of my sister's fingernails on her phone as she texts her friends, even the smell of the ocean breeze air-freshener makes me want to cry. It doesn't help that when we stopped at a stoplight, the car beside us had _Smooth Criminal_ playing on the radio. _Annie are you okay? Are you okay?_ No! She's not okay, she'll never be okay again!

After we got home, I ran to my room. I have had almost all my meals in my room, and I never come out except to use the bathroom. This will be the first time I go out of the house.

"Jean! HURRY UP!" I yank my shirt from the dryer and throws it over my head. It's still damp.

"I'm coming!" I storm down the steps and past my mom to the car. I plop down in the passenger seat and cross my arms in front of me. My head starts to hurt.

"I am not going to tolerate this for much longer, Jean," My mom says, "I know you're going through a lot right now, but locking yourself in your room and snapping at your dad and me anytime we come in is getting really old.

"Then why are you even taking care of me anymore? Why don't you just put me in foster care, it'll be less hassle." I feel hot tears behind my eyes, making them burn.

"Jean. . you watch your tongue. We are not going to put you in foster care, We love you, it's just your attitude is getting very old." _Oh when is she going to get past this, surely my daughter isn't a freak. Xavier just got it wrong. Jean is completely normal._ I hear her thoughts, and it makes even more frustrated.

 _Why can't I control this!?_

I don't say anything else for the rest of hour car ride. I sit there, drowning in my own grief and frustration until my mom pulls into the College parking lot. "The Professor is going to help you get a hang of your powers, Jeannie, Okay? So please don't get an attitude with him like you do with us."

I tell her I won't, and we enter the building.

Xavier's office is on the second floor, and the only way up is the elevator. My mom leads me through the maze of halls. Some of the staff recognize us since my dad works here, we get a lot of, 'Hello, Mrs. Grey, how are you?' and 'Good afternoon, how is the Grey family today?' My mom always says 'we are doing excellent' because no one wants to admit that their family is falling apart because of their freak of a daughter. My mom always tells me who the person is out of earshot, like I'd be remotely interested who teaches Biology or has the duty of cleaning the halls.

We finally get to Room 246, which is Professor Xavier's office. Mom knocks and we go in. It's a small room, with soft lighting that takes my eyes some getting used to after the bright LED hall lights. A desk is situated in the middle of the room and takes up most of the space. Along the wall, bookshelves are crammed with anything from Greek Mythology to World War 2 books (Xavier is a history professor I believe) and a chair is hastily packed in between the bookshelves and the desk. It doesn't seem like the best place for someone in a wheelchair, but Professor Xavier is sitting behind the desk, still in his pressed suit and father like smile.

"Hello, Mrs. Grey. Jean." He nods to both of us, then he keeps his vision locked on me, "How are you today?"

"Okay," I say.

"How are you really?" He asks it like he did at the hospital, apparently, I can't hide from him like I do my parents.

Without warning, I say, "I miss her, Annie I mean." I wasn't planning to open up. Not to Xavier, not even to my parents, but I did. What's wrong with me?

My mom plays with the ends of my hair, "I'll leave you to it then." then leaves the office.

"Please, Jean, have a seat." Professor Xavier motions to the chair in front of his desk. I sit.

He takes a stack of cards out from the desk drawer and lays them down. They look like flashcards for kindergarteners learning shapes. He shuffles through them and selects one, then holds it so I can't see the shape, only the red back of the card.

"I want you to tell me what shape I have," he says.

"A blue star," I guess, I really had no idea.

"No, No, No, use your telepathy," he says gently.

I stare blankly at him. I had no idea how to use my telepathy, it just randomly kicked in. Sometimes my head will be completely blank, then all of the sudden I can hear everyone's thoughts for like a fifth of a mile radius.

"I-I don't know how, " I admit.

"Just… let yourself let go," He says, "Your brain will control your powers without your knowledge, just try to tap into it."

I take a deep breath and close my eyes, I image myself in some type of jungle, a peaceful stream is in front of me, and the only noise there is the wind, (actually it's the air conditioner kicking in, but in my mind it's the wind) then I see it. In the sky, a yellow square appears, then the edges begin to fade until it's a triangle. Then the color darkens until it's orange.

"A triangle?" I ask, "I orange triangle."

"Are you asking or telling?"

"Telling."

"Correct. "

We continue with the flashcards, the only one I missed was the blue star. _Seriously?_ I said it was a purple diamond.

"Now let's work with your telekinesis." He takes out a rubber ball, a stuffed panda, and a few other soft things and places them on the desk. "Can you levitate this?" He points towards a snake-eye.

"Uh… I don't think I have telekinesis, I've never had any trouble with it." I say.

"Oh yes, of course not," The Professor closes his eyes. I feel kind of awkward sitting there until a piercing pain fills my head. I cradle my head in my hands, but the pain continues.

"Jean. Jean Focus! Control it!"

"I don't know how!" I squeal, "make it stop. Please."

"Control it!"

I try to imagine the jungle again, but my head is too busy trying not to crack in half for me to do anything peaceful. Then, _Enough_. The pain starts to compact until I can open my eyes. My cheeks feel tear-stained and my eyes burn from crying. Books and the toys are scattered across the room, Professor Xavier picks up the nearest one, _a Beginner's Guide to the Trojan War,_ and sets it on the desk.

"This session is over. I'll invite your mother back in." He says.

I had a feeling this was going to take a lot more work.

to be continued.

 **Author's notes: what do you all think? I am modeling her parents from my own, and this is how I think they would respond If I receieved mutant powers. My "editor" (aka my cousin, Lu) thinks that Jean's parents are overreacting, but then again, I don't think any parents would react very calmly to they're children being a mutant. Anyway, just thought I'd clear that up if any of you were thinking that. see you all later!**


	3. Chapter 2

School, every kid's high society… except for mine.

A few weeks after my first session, the Professor announces to me and my mom that I have enough control to go back to school. The first day back was awful, when I first got on the bus there were thirty kids mumbling, whispering rumors about me. With Annie, I wasn't the most popular student, but at least I had a friend because now I have turned into every bully's target.

Nearly a year and a half later, I'm sitting in my sixth-grade math class, Just like any normal student. However I still have sessions with Professor Xavier every Monday and Friday, so I am not a normal student.

I sit in the very back of the class, my eyes glued to the desktop and my hands fidgeting in my lap. I can hear whispering from a few rows up, and my name is passed around, but I learned to ignore that a long time ago. Mr. Smith is talking about the Pascal Triangle, but I'm not paying attention.

"Miss Grey, why don't you answer?" Mr. Smith asks. I have no clue what he just asked and that was pretty obvious.

"Uh…" The classroom is filled with laughter, and my face burns hot. "I-I don't know," I say.

He sighs, "Very well, Miss Grey," he moves onto the next student, and I go back at focusing on my desk.

After the bell rings, I'm the first to leave, I plan to hide in the bathroom like I do every day at recess, but I don't make it there.

Simon Niles is the worst person ever, and I've turned into his personal punching bag. He and his cronies, Max and Tyler, blocks my way through the hall.

"I-I don't know," He does a very bad impression of me, "Who do you think you're fooling, Grey, you're nothing but a retard."

"Let me through," I say through gritted teeth.

"I know what you are," he whisperers.

My heart starts to beat quickly. Could he know about my telepathy?

Simon yanks me up by the front of my shirt, "freak." he spits. I kick at him, but he shifts so that I only kick air.

"Let go of me!" I command.

"Should I let go?" Simon asks Tyler. "Nah." He punches me in the shoulder. Pain swims down my arm and I kick again, this time hitting him in the leg.

He does not respond well to that. He takes one hand off my shirt and wraps his long fingers around my throat.

"STOP!" I choke. I feel a twinge of a headache and Simon flies backward into a locker. I slide down and crumble to the floor. I claw at my temples, but I feel my powers escaping my control. I feel fear, and confusing, and somewhere in another part of the school, hunger. Simon scurries away from me, his face washed with a smirk. Then I black out.

When I wake up, police, medics, and teachers are swarming the area. Lockers are thrown around the room, papers and books scattered the floor. It looks like a tornado went through. A psychic windstorm of my own creation.

Mr. Smith grabs me by the forearm and leads me to the office, where He throws me into a seat and a policeman starts accusing me of vandalism and destruction and witchcraft, and anything else that could get me in trouble with the police.

The door opens and Sara comes in. "Stop! My sister is terribly sick, I am so sorry she destroyed C hall, but understand it is far from her fault." She says. "Come along, Jean, Mom is in the parking lot."

I stand up, shocked that for once Sara is actually helping me, but the police officer grabs my shoulder.

"She cannot leave, Ma'am, your sister is charged with destruction of school property to the first degree."

Sara rolls her emerald eyes, "Sure, but just know that she has anger issues, hints the reason the hall was trashed, if you anger her, she'll rip this office apart with her own two hands."

The Policeman frowns, "according to an eyewitness report, she didn't touch anything-"

"Let me guess, Your eyewitness report was that Simon kid, the one who attempted to rape that ninth grader under the bleachers last year? Yeah, I'm sure he didn't bend the truth at all. And since this school is too cheap to buy security cameras We have no proof what so ever, so there." Sara takes my hand and leads me out of the office.

"Thanks," I say awkwardly.

"No problem, I can cross off 'telling off a policeman' on my bucket list," She says.

My sister is weird, but I love her.

My mom is waiting for us when we get down the front steps.

"What the hell happened?" She hisses.

"Simon Niles was bullying me, I lost control. Mom, he knows what I am." I don't tell her how he almost killed me, but looking back, I probably should have.

"How?"

"I don't know, but he seemed to-"

"He's just a jerk, Jean," Sara says, "Don't worry about it, no one will believe him."

"That police guy did," I say.

"Simon's dad is big in the government," Mom says. She pulls out of the parking lot before Sara is even buckled in the backseat, "he has a lot of influence."

"Sounds like a Malfoy," Sara says.

"Jean, Me and your Father have made a decision," my mom turns out onto the main road, "After this accident, it's clear that it's necessary. You're going to Xavier's school."

* * *

"I'm not going. You can't make me." I say.

My dad sighs, "Jean, We've told you, it's the best place for you… at this particular moment."

"It's all the way in Westchester!" I snap, "That's like two hours away."

"Yes, that's why it's a boarding school," My dad hands me the brochure. _Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters._

"Sounds like a prep school," I say.

"It's for people like you, Jeannie," My mom says.

"You mean a school for _freaks?_ And don't call me Jeannie," I snap. The name Jeannie was my old life, my life before this hell. Before I lost Annie. Now I'm just Jean.

"Jean, look how beautiful the campus is," My dad points to multiple pictures of gardens, and fountain, and a whole view of the school that looks like it came out of a _Fancy House Monthly magazine._

"Looks like heaven," Sara says, "but so does poison ivy."

"you're not helping, Dear." My mom says.

I start to get a headache again, and since I don't want to lose control of my powers twice in one day, I excuse myself from the table and rush up to my room.

My room, the only place where I feel safe but lonely. Up to a year ago, Sara shared this room with me, but after I got back from the hospital I learned that she moved her stuff to the spare bedroom in the basement, leaving me in the too big and empty room. I lay across my bed that is covered in my My little Pony bedspread and Hello Kitty sheets. I look around the room, the walls are full of movie posters, Lion King, Toy Story, Chronicles of Narnia, Enchanted, and one huge poster with a cat riding a bicycle. I despise them all but I can't bring myself to take them down. If I do, I'll lose my childhood completely. Also, Lion King is still good.

I look at the bare spot where I had taped the pictures of Annie and I. When I got back from the hospital, the first thing I did was rip them down and hide them in the very bottom of my dresser drawer. I haven't looked at them since that day, but today I needed Annie.

I slowly go to my dresser and kneel down to get to the bottom drawer. I push past the clothes that I never wear and pull out the stack. I don't look at them until I get back to my bed, and even then my hands shake as I flip the first one over. It's from our last sleepover. Annie is rocking out to some karaoke, you can see half my face in the very corner as I tried to get both of us in the shot. I laugh out loud at some, but by the end of the small stack, I have tears streaming down my cheeks.

I lay on my back, my eyes trying to make shapes in the ceiling, then I fall asleep.

My dream is terrible. It starts with me and Annie having a sleepover, we are watching something on TV when there is a knock at the door. I answer it, and a man in a hoodie grabs me and holds a gun up to my temple. Annie rushes over and kicks the man so he losing a grip on me. Then like I'm watching it in slow motion, a bullet shoots from the gun and hits Annie in the chest. She slumps against the doorframe while the man in the hoodie laughs. I crawl over to her and grab her hand. "Jeannie?" she asks. "I'm here," I say. Then I feel her pain. "Control it, Jean! Focus and Control it!" I hear The Professor inside the house, but I can't control anything. The world begins to spin around me, then-

There is a knock on the door. I wake up, my heart beats in my throat and my face is covered in cold, sticky sweat. My mom comes in. She has the school brochure in her and her arm wrapped around her laptop.

She sits on my bed and opens her computer, The Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters website is up. They are not giving up easily.

"Can we make a deal?"

"Maybe."

She looks around the bedroom, then says, "Give the school a month, and if you don't like it, then We'll pull you out."

"A week," I say.

"Four weeks." She says.

"That's still a month," I reply. "A week,"

"Thirty days."

"Still a month," I say.

"Just give it a month, sweetie, I promise You'll like it."

Needless to say, the next day I'm pulled out of public school and we make arrangements for me to start at the new school in a week.

* * *

I Hate packing.

My mom brought down my suitcase from the attic, but she said I was on my own to pack.

So, after some organization, I have my suitcase full of clothes, a plastic tote with my bedding, and my panda book bag with miscellaneous stuff (Books, plushies, my emergency candy supply).

That night is our last night together for a while. My mom makes my favorite for dinner, quesadillas. We rent _Hunger Games_ and then go to bed. Basically, it's my dream night if it weren't for the fact that I'm leaving tomorrow.

The next morning, my mom asks if there is anyone I want to see before I leave. I said there was one person.

Twenty minutes later we are adventuring through the snowy roads to the cemetery. My mom parks on the side of the road and we hike up the hill to where the Richardson plots are. It was easy to tell where Annie was because the ground is still mounted under the snow.

My mom lays the pot of daisies (Annie's favorite flower) next to the snow-covered headstone. Through a pool of tears, I read,

Annie C. Richardson

August 15,2001- September 6, 2011

How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.

"Was she pretty?" I ask.

"Huh?" My mom puts her arm around me.

"At the funeral, as she pretty?"

"Oh, I don't know about that, Jean, We didn't go."

"What?" I ask, "what do you mean you didn't go?"

She hesitates, "you were in the hospital, we didn't even consider going, I'm sorry."

Tears roll down my cheeks, and my throat aches for me to start sobbing, but I can't. Not here anyways.

I had known Annie since before either of us knew how to walk, and my parents didn't even show up at her funeral. I felt angry and sad but mostly hurt. However, now I am realizing something; My life has changed too much for me to stay here, I have to go to the school.

The car ride back home was awful. Mom kept quiet the entire time, so I could do nothing but think about Annie. I could sense that she was close to tears. I was too, just not for the same reason. She's sad because I'm leaving. I'm upset because they didn't go to Annie's funeral.

We pull into the driveway, and I run into the house. Tears stream down my cheeks as I get to the top stair. Half of me feels like it was a mistake to go see her grave, but the other half knew it was necessary for me to cope.

When I get to my room, Sara is sitting on my bed.

"How did it go?" She asks.

"Okay," I mumble, wiping tears from my eyes. I don't cry in front of people.

"So, you're leaving, huh?"

"I guess."

"Will there be boys at the school?"

"Possibly,"

"Will you get married to one of these _possible_ boys?"

"I don't know."

"If you do, can I be your Maid of Honor?"

"Probably."

"Yes! I've always wanted to be an M.O.H." She smiles, "when me and Paul get married, you can be mine."

"Thanks, I guess."

Paul is Sara's really annoying, Video-game-obsessed, boyfriend. I think the odds of them even getting married is pretty slim.

"What are you wearing to school?"

I point to my planned outfit, A pair of jeans and a sweatshirt with a worn graphic of cactus on it.

"No, No, No. Do you want them thinking you're some type of grudge-loving punk?" My sister says.

I shrug. I really don't care what they think of me.

"Well, since first impressions are everything, let us change this." Sara begins digging through my bare closet and dressers. Most of my clothes were already packed, the only things left were the things I did not want to bring.

She pulls out a leather jacket, a floral pattern dress, and a pair of black boots. "Try these on," she demands.

I slip out of my current clothes and put the new outfit on. The dress was from Easter photos a few years ago, so it surprises me that it still fits. The jacket is a little snug around my upper arms, but not so much that I couldn't move. All in all, I didn't really mind my new 'first impression' outfit.

"Gorgeous!" Sara claps her hands together, "I can make a somewhat presentable human being out of you yet!"

"You have like an hour and a half." I say, "Good luck with that." Then it hits me, I'm really leaving. I didn't comprehend it fully while I was packing, or even when my mom was Skyping with Professor Xavier to cover the final details. But now, when there are 90 minutes before I leave, does it actually start to have any meaning.

"Hey, J, are you alright?" Sara asks. I realize I had zoned out and snapped back into focus, "Yeah. I'm fine."

"Want me to do your hair too?"

For the next half hour, Sara yanks at my tangles of red hair. With all the pain I went through, I'm disappointed that she only did a high ponytail, but I'm also glad it's only that because I'm going to have to be able to take it out by myself.

My mom calls us down for lunch, a quick meal of grilled cheese and soup, and my dad starts to load up my stuff in the trunk of the car.

Then, with one last look at the house, I grew up in, took my first steps in, got grounded for the first time in, I climb into the car. I'm off to start a new life. A life that is, hopefully, better than my old one.

To be continued

 **Author's notes: Okay, what do you all think? I needed a reason for her parents to decide to send her to the school that wasn't her powers going crazy since she has classes with Xavier, thus I created Simon.**

 **I have a crazy busy week with end of term exams, but hopefully, I'll get another chapter published Thursday or Friday. See you all then :) Cheers!**


	4. Chapter 3

Car rides suck.

Sara sits in the backseat, busying herself by playing Cut the Rope. I busy myself by trying not to vomit.

The silence in the car is unbearable. My mom and dad keep exchanging nervous glances, but neither of them says anything. I end up looking down at my lap as we bounce along a windy backroad.

"Follow road for ten miles." The GPS says. I audibly sigh, I can't wait to get off of this crappy road.

My mom looks back at me while she reaches into her purse, "Jean Sweetie, your dad and I decided to get you a little going away present. She takes out a box wrapped in Mickey Mouse paper and hands it back to me. Sara watches as I demolish, I mean unwrap an iPhone box.

"Oh wow, thanks!" I say, turning the box around.

"It's so you can call us without using the school's phone." My dad says, "But of course, you can play games, and take selfies, and whatever else kids your age do."

"Yeah, thanks," I say again. They are putting it off as a gift, and it is, but I can sense they're doing it so I'll feel somewhat like a normal kid when I go to the anything but normal mutant school.

"That's the same model as mine," Sara points out.

"Yeah, awesome," I try to be as enthusiastic as I can as I open the box with a huge (mostly fake) smile. I turn it on, they already charged it, and check out the different features. It wasn't that I wasn't appreciative and thankful for it, it's just since Annie died, I haven't had a huge love for material objects like a normal kid my age does. Also, I don't fancy myself tech savvy, so that's another thing.

I flip through the user guide from the box, but reading starts to give me a headache, so I store it back in the box and in my bookbag to deal with it later.

The rest of the two-hour car trip is not very exciting. We pass a lot of trees, some rundown homes, a few deer, a dead raccoon, everything you would expect to see on country roads. We turn onto a freeway and my dad starts to grumble about crazed drivers. Sara shows me some uninteresting photos of her friends on Instagram, and My mom turns the radio on, only to have the station go out of range a few minutes later.

Finally, we turn off onto an exit with the sign, E _ntering Westchester County, New York. population, 972,500_. We follow more road signs and the GPS until we get to North Salem.

North Salem is on the outskirts of New York City, so I expected the streets to be very busy. I guess coming at 3:30 in the afternoon is a good time. We only get caught in traffic once, and that was because of a goose that wouldn't get out of the road not matter how many cars were piling up behind it.

* * *

A long, brick wall surrounds the school, which is an eighteenth-century mansion. My dad pulls in the open iron gate and onto the gravel drive. I can't help but notice the Xs in circles that top the gate as we go passed.

A fountain is situated in the very middle of the yard, with the driveway circling on either side of it. The snow covered grass is speckled with the occasional leafless seedling tree that is held up by a string.

The mansion itself is huge, with arches, and windows, and anything else you would expect an eighteenth-century architect to build. To the side of the building, a basketball court sits lonely in the cold, on the other side, an empty swimming pool.

My dad parks the car and gets out, My mom and sister follow, leaving me alone to look around the car one last time before getting out.

Professor Xavier meets us at the doors and takes us to his office to finish last minute paperwork before he take us on the tour of the school.

The first floor is made up of classrooms, the standard chalkboard/desk scenario, a library, the kitchen, lounge, rec room, and supply closet. Of course, we don't get a tour of the supply closet.

The second floor is made up of halls, bedrooms, and a common area with computers, tables for studying, and shelves full of board games.

My dad jokes around with his old co-worker, talking about the good ol' days and why a guy named Quincy was just fired. Finally, we arrive back to the lounge, where the Professor introduces me to two students. Scott Summers has an average build, messy brown hair, and a warm ivory skin tone. He wears a pair of red glasses, which he keeps situating nervously, along with a button down shirt and worn jeans. He sits across the table from Warren Worthington, a lengthy kid with blond hair, cool blue eyes, perfectly gelled hair, expensive clothes and a beach tan. He would look like a pretty normal kid if it weren't for the feathery, white wings protruding from his back.

"I wouldn't be surprised if one of this kid ended up being your future, mutant hubby," Sara whispers in my ear.

I glare at her, but I can't help but smile, they were both attractive.

Professor Xavier finishes the tour, and my mom and dad get my stuff from the car.

The next few minutes are a blur of hugs, kisses, and my mom's tears.

"Remember, call us anytime you'd like," my dad claps me on the shoulder.

Sara leans over and whispers, "My money's on Wings." I roll my eyes.

After another round of hugs, they leave the office. I know better to watch the car pull out of the driveway.

"I called Scott to show you to your room," Professor Xavier says.

"Oh, okay," I strap my tote onto my suitcase just as Scott comes in.

"Need help?" He asks, nodding towards my luggage.

I shoulder my bookbag and shake my head, "I got it."

"Room sixteen, Scott," The Professor calls after us.

"Yes, sir."

I follow Scott down the hall and to the elevator, where he punches the up button with his knuckle. When we step in, I experience my first ever elevator music, which is a well-known concept, but I don't think anyone really has experienced it, Me included, until now.

"So, um, it's Jean, right?" Scott asks over Beethoven's fifth symphony.

"Yeah," I say.

"I like it, it's short. What are your powers?"

I stand my suitcase up and tuck my hair behind my ear, "Telekinesis, and some telepathy abilities too. How about you?"

"Oh, I have optic blasts as the Professor puts it," He taps the arm of his glasses, "Without these, I can't open my eyes without having deadly beams shoot out."

"Oh, interesting," I say because I couldn't think of anything else to say.

The elevator stops and we step out. The hall is the same color scheme as downstairs, red and beige with mahogany furniture. We pass the bedroom doors, one is completely covered in band and movie posters. Another one has just one poster for Lord of the Rings, then one simply has a plaque reading, Henry's bedroom. Scott stops in front of a door and opens it, revealing a room in the same colors as the hall.

A bed is situated in the middle of the room, with a nightstand topped with a lamp at the side. A desk that is stacked with textbooks and other basic school supplies (pencils, loose leaf paper, etc.) is next to a window seat full of pillows and extra blankets. A closet and bathroom are on either side of a dresser, and a bare bookshelf is next to the door.

"Do you need help unpacking?" Scott asks.

I tell him that I'm fine and he leaves. I unzip my suitcase and start hanging up some clothes in the closet and shoving other things in my dresser. I put the suitcase under my bed, then I throw my favorite blanket (light blue with penguins) onto the bottom of the already neatly made bed, set my alarm clock onto the nightstand, and put my toiletries in the bathroom.

I change into my originally planned outfit, cactus sweatshirt, and comfy jeans.

My head start to hurt, I try to shake it off like I used to do at home, but then I realize something, I don't have to hide it here.

There is a knock on the door, "Jean," a woman's voice follows, "Dinner is in ten minutes, I don't think Scott told you."

"Oh, thanks," I reply.

Before going down to the kitchen, I pop an Advil and slip on my hightops.

The kitchen is a maze of stainless steel and oak appliances and furniture. Four boys sit around the table, Scott and Warren are among them. One looks a little bit younger, He has light brown hair, brown eyes, and braces. He basically looks like a normal, awkward twelve years old. The other one looks like he's ready to win a bunch of academic awards, He has perfectly parted black hair, and his nose stuck in a book. However, his argyle sweater vest can't hide his bulging muscles. Seriously, this kid has like an eight pack.

Warren winks when I get close, and Scott pats the seat by him, motioning me to sit.

The boy with braces smiles, "I'm Bobby," He says, "Bobby Drake."

"Jean," I say.

"Hank," muscles with a book says. He looks up, revealing blue eyes under thick glasses.

Professor Xavier comes into the kitchen, followed by a woman with strawberry blond hair carrying a stack of pizza boxes.

"I'm glad you were able to find your way, Jean," the Professor says, "Even I can get turned around in the mazes of halls. I am assuming you've met everyone?"

I nod.

"This is Moira Mactaggert." He motions to the woman with the pizza, "She assists me in teaching,"

"Hello, Jean," Moira says, I recognize her voice from when she told me it was dinner time.

"Hi," I say.

Moira sets the pizza down and the kids around the table turn into hungry piranha because, within a few minutes, the first box is demolished.

The rest of the time is full of chitchat. I learn that Warren comes from a long line of millionaires who have their own weapons corp. Bobby can freeze water molecules, as he demonstrated on Warren's pepperoni pizza. Hank is a Shakespeare addict and Scott likes homework and vegetables (Okay, he didn't really say that he didn't really say much of anything, but I sort of figured that was the case with the disapproving looks he would give anyone who suggests anything fun or slightly dangerous).

At the end of the night, Warren and Bobby go to the lounge to play video games and Hank goes to the common area to work on homework, leaving me and Scott to go up to the dorms together.

"Welcome to Mutant high," Scott says, "Even if none of us are actually in high school yet."

I smile as he stops at his bedroom door, (it's empty except for a small light saber sticker,) "Good night," I say.

"Good night, Jean." He grins at me from around his shoulder as I go to my room. I think I have finally found where I belong.

I would be happy with my powers if it weren't for the constant headaches and nightmares. I read for awhile and when I finally do fall asleep, my dream, of course, has to be a nightmare.

 _I'm sitting on a stone bench overlooking a small flower patch. I feel someone close to me, but I don't meet their eye, even though they're watching me. I say something along the lines of, 'it's a nice day, isn't it?' and they grunt in approval. 'It's a shame it won't stay that way,' they say. 'What do you mean?' I ask. 'That is what I mean,' They point to a forest in the distance, where a humanoid shape stands, watching us. Once it realizes we are watching it, it scurries from the trees,towards us, it takes me a minute to realize who this humanoid shape is, but when I do, I jump to my feet. It's Simon Niles. I try to run away, but he pulls me towards him until his long fingers grab my shoulder, I feel something cold and metallic against my temple. I try to pull away from it, but the gun is still up against my head. I hear the click of it being loaded then…_

"Ahh!" I sit up straight in bed. My book falling to the floor. My heart beats in my chest and my entire body trembles. My cheeks are moist from tears. I try to catch my breath when there is a knock on my door.

"Jean, may I come in?" The Professor calls.

"Uh, yeah I guess," I say, wiping the tears away.

The door opens and he comes in, pajama-clad. "Nightmare?" He asks.

I nod.

"Do you get these often?" He asks. I nod again. I can't get my mouth to form words for some reason.

He rolls over to my bed, "That is common for psychics, however, that probably does not really make you feel any better." He puts his hand on my shoulder, "I would like to have a session with you tomorrow, say about 1:30? You will miss Moira's literature class, but there will be enough time for you to catch up."

"Okay, Professor," I say.

* * *

After a lunch of fish sticks and tater tots, I walk down the hallway to the Professor's office. I expect to find him with the shape cards or plush toys, but when I get in, he is sitting at his desk, his hand folded in front of him. No cards, no stuffed pandas, only him.

"Have a seat," He says, motioning to the seat in front of the desk.

After I'm seated he says, "I would like to see the dream. I know you may not want to, but please think about the dream, everything you remember."

That isn't hard, I've been thinking about it all day, in every class. I take a deep breath and remember the cold gun against my temple, and the faceless person sitting by me on the bench, and Simon's eyes that seemed to glow red, and…

"Very good, Jean," Professor Xavier says, "That would be all."

I stand up and go towards the door. "Oh, and Jean," He says, "Remember, most nightmares are simply that, nightmares. Don't worry about it, okay?"

"Yes, Professor," I say.

 _Most nightmares are simply that, Nightmares._ What does _most_ mean? Do some nightmares come to pass? I've heard of psychics who claimed to be able to predict the future when in a dream state, but I never thought actual psychics could do that. And I definitely never thought I could do that.

To be continued

 **Author's notes: Sorry for being sort of late, I was halfway done with the chapter before deciding to trash it and start over, because as I'm sure all writers know, it always sounds better in your head. But anyway, I was looking forward to writing this chapter since I started writing this story, so I wanted to make it as well written as possible :) Anyhoo, remember any comment, critism, and suggestions are welcome. Nothing is written in stone, so if you have any suggestions for scenes or characters let me know.**


	5. Chapter 4

After all this time, I finally found a place where I belong.

After a month, I completely forget about the deal I made with my mom, I absolutely love it here. Not to mention that I'm almost completely used to my new routine. I get up at seven, breakfast is at eight, then History, Science, and Math, then Lunch. After lunch is Physics and Literature. On Tuesday and Thursday I have sessions with the Professor after classes, but other than that I'm not too busy.

I spent my birthday in my bedroom, taking care of my virtual pet on my phone and deciding what to buy on Amazon with the money my parents sent me. I didn't bother to tell anyone, _Hey, I'm thirteen._ Mainly because I didn't tell anyone my actual age before. Not that I care if they know or not, but since we are all in the same classes anyway, it doesn't really matter.

I sit at a table next to Hank as Moira taps the chalkboard at the front of the classroom.

"How long could you survive in Space without a Spacesuit?" She asks, instantly Hank raises his hand.

"Given that you would have proper medical attention afterward, stay out of the sun, and breath out instead of holding your breath, You can last for over a minute," he hesitates, "However, after about ten seconds you lose consciousness due to a complete lack of oxygen."

"Excellent, Henry!" Moira says.

"Teacher's pet," Warren whispers from the seat behind us. By the _smack_ afterward, I think Scott hit him.

Moira continues talking but is interrupted by a knock on the door. Professor Xavier wheels in, a portfolio in his lap. "A word, Moria," He says. She turns to us, "I'll be right back," and she follows him out of the classroom.

Instantly, chatter fills the room. Warren along with Bobby (who sits at the back table all by himself in this period) start talking about some sportsman who got injured the night before, and Hank and Scott talk about something called the 'Danger Room' whatever that is. I eavesdrop on their conversation because I really don't care about Mr. football star and his broken-in-two-places ankle.

"It doesn't seem rational to expect us to move on so quickly," Hank is saying, "After all, Warren and Robert just passed to Level 2."

I sense Scott rolling his eyes under his shades, "But holding us back until-"

"We could us the practice, Scott." Hank hypothesizes, "After all, Jean hasn't even had a session."

"Wait, you haven't had a Danger room session yet?" Scott asks me.

"What?" I ask, feeling slightly bad for eavesdropping, "Oh, um no."

This shuts Warren up, "is that why she wasn't down there today? Have you even seen the danger room?"

I try to decide if I've seen it before, I've been on every floor, and I thought in every room, but maybe not. "Where is it?" I ask.

"ooooh! " Warren claps his hands together, "I can't believe the proff hasn't given you the official X-Men tour yet! Meet me at eleven O'clock tonight, I'll give it to you."

"I could come. And maybe watch you make out a little too," Bobby says with a smirk. Warren glares at his younger classmate, "You'd wish, Blizzard Butt."

At that, Moira and the Professor come back in. Moira ties her hair back in a knot as she says, "class dismissed."

Professor Xavier nods, "Moira and I have a meeting with Senator Kelly and we will be back late. I'm putting Scott and Hank in charge," he situated his tie and exits the room.

"Better yet," Warren whispers, "Maybe we'll check out the basement earlier than eleven."

* * *

Moira and the Professor leave for the capital twenty minutes later. Scott was ecstatic about being in charge, Hank seemed like he could care less. As I sit in the lounge, Half watching Bobby and Warren play Fez, and half playing Candy Crush on my phone, Hank comes in with a book and sits on the window seat. Scott, however, comes in, walking straighter than usual, and sits down on the couch across from me. "We could be doing something useful," He says, "Like homework."

"Calm down, _Professor S_ , we don't have any homework," Warren says, "and unless you are going as far as asign us some, we have a free night."

Scott looks down at his lap for a minute, like Warren just broke his confidence, "Knowing you, you probably have something overdue." the comes back has a small smile following it.

"Actually, I was going to study with Jean," Warren says.

I raise my eyebrows, "Were you?" I ask.

"Well, I was hoping, too, I mean you are really good at science." _Also maybe exploring the basement. Scott is going to suspect it though, and he was really against it for some reason. He's such a dork sometimes._

"I thought you were going to show me this so-called Danger room," I say.

'Or we can do that." Warren tries to hide a smile. But I could sense it. I did feel bad for reading his thoughts, but it was an accident, and he probably doesn't know.

"No way. Professor Xavier told us to behave," Scott commands.

Warren goes over and puts his arm around Scott's shoulder, "lighten up Four-Eyes. We're only gonna initiate Jean into the X-Men."

"I'm sure there is a good reason why Professor X hasn't done it yet," Scott crosses his arms tightly across his chest, forming his hands in fists as he does so.

"Like what?" Warren asks. I was also wondering that. Up until Class a little bit ago, I hadn't even heard of the X-Men. Why wouldn't the Professor tell me about it? Did he think I wasn't ready for something like this? Whatever _this_ is.

"I-I," Scott hesitates before saying, "Fine, let's go."

"Come on, Jean!" Warren says giddily like someone said Christmas came early and he gets a puppy.

Me, Warren, Bobby, and surprisingly, Scott, go down the hallway to the elevator. Warren hits the down-arrow button. Bobby leans against the wall and asks, "So, do you guys think that Professor X expects to come home to see the school in pieces?"

"That's why he put me and Hank in charge and not you," Scott says, "He knows we won't allow the school to fall apart."

The door opens, revealing a metal-plated hallway. Our footsteps echo throughout the foyer as we go down it, Warren in the lead. We stop at a round door, a keypad and speaker are on the wall next to the alcove. Warren puts in the code, 012502 and the door slide open.

The room on the other side lights up with bright LEDs, it looks like a mix between a cockpit of a spaceship and a school gymnasium. The walls are also plated with metal, but the floor is a waxed hardwood.

"The codes are just our birthdate, mine is January 25, 2002, Scott's is 081701 since that's his birthday, Bobby's is 091202, Blah Blah Blah, you get it." Warren hits a button and the lights start to change colors like a dance floor.

I nod, "And this is all under the school?"

"Nah, the elevator is like the glass elevator in Willy Wonka, it's just you can't tell it's flying because it's metal and not glass, We're in Australia now," Bobby says, this gains a punch in the arm from Warren.

"Actually, this is the basement. There is a sub-basement below us, that has the infirmary and Cerebro." Scott replies.

"Cerebro? What's that?"

Warren shakes his head, "And to think, I thought you were the Prof's favorite. He hasn't even told you about his pride and joy! Pathetic."

"Cerebro is how The Professor found you, well I think all of us actually," Scott says, clearly annoyed with his fellow classmates once again.

"Yeah, it's a huge round room, you can't miss it," Warren says.

"He uses his telepathy to track down mutants all over the earth," Scott comments.

"Hooks himself to a computer, it's kinda weird," Warren adds, "Anyway, want to see this bad boy is action?" He nods his head towards a window towards the top of the room. Through it, I can slightly see computers.

"You said _show her the danger room_ , not program it," Scott says.

"What's the point of showing her if we don't program it?" Warren argues.

"I'm sure Professor Xavier had a perfectly good reason for not showing her?" Scott's face flushes pink and I sense a fight coming on.

"What if he didn't to keep her safe?" Scott asks, "What if she didn't know about any of this stuff because the Professor thinks her powers are unstable?"

"I'm right here!" I snap, furious that they are talking about me like I'm not here, "And my powers aren't unstable, _Mr. Optic Blast_!" My body starts to shake from anger. I don't know where the last part came from, and I slightly feel guilty about it.

"Umm, Guys?"

"Don't. you .Dare!" red light starts to dance behind Scott's glasses and I sense he's struggling to hold it back. It's just proving my point.

Bobby steps in between us, "Hey, cool down, Scott," He puts a hand on his shoulder, "You walked into that one."

"Guys!?" Warren says urgently and I realize it isn't my body that's shaking. It's the entire room.

"Did you start the room?" Bobby asks.

"No way."

The doors open and Hank rushes in, his glasses are askew and his book is hanging open at his side, "It's the Brotherhood," He says, "And they're angry."

* * *

"So, that's the Brotherhood," I say.

In the lobby of the school, We stand five feet away from a group of four boys. Two of them look like normal kids, one has a mop of brown other has white hair. The other two are not as normal, one stands shorter than the rest by at least a foot, has sickly green skin and a very long (and very gross) last one stands at least a foot higher than everyone else, basically, he looks like a sumo wrestler in a sleeveless jean jacket.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Scott shouts.

"Simply taking what is rightfully ours," The white-haired kid says. He seemed to be the leader.

"What are you talking about?" Warren's wings are spread to full length, he meant business.

"I don't think they understand, Quicksilver," The brown haired kid says.

"Shall we show them, Avalanche?" The kid named Quicksilver asks.

I tap into my telepathy for a second to learn what they are after a few seconds before they act.

"Where's Cerebro?" I whisper to Hank.

"Why?"

"That's what they're after."

He looks at me with wide eyes, "Oh my, This should be good."

There is a flash of silver and blue and Quicksilver is past us. Well, we know why he's called Quicksilver now.

"Stall the rest," I say, "I'll take care of him."

"You don't have any proper training" Scott removes his glasses and shoots the trio of mutants, The sumo wrestler guy blocks it with his body. "Are you crazy?"

"Probably," I shout, "Hank, come with me!"

We bolt down the hall. Hank opens a door leading down a stairwell and we briskly go, two steps at a time, to the basement. I flinch at how our footsteps echo.

Hank stops at an intersection of the hall and looks around the corner. Quicksilver is outside a door, entering code after code on the keypad trying to get the door opened.

"What's the plan?" He asks me.

"Can I see your book?" I ask, nodding to the hardback copy of _Les Miserables._

"What do you want with-"

I yank it out of his hand and throw it towards Quicksilver. It slams into him square in the back (Goal!) and He turns around. Anger flashes in his eyes.

"Want me to run?" Hank asks.

"Huh?"

Then I understand, Hank runs down the hall and Quicksilver follows him, running like the Flash until he bashes into Hank's muscular body.

I sprint to the doors of I guess Cerebro. I have no idea what I'm doing, but I know I have to protect it.

"Uh, Jean?" Hank cries. Blood spews from his nose and a bruise is forming around his left eye. Quicksilver's arms are going like one hundred miles an hour, and within the next handful of seconds, Hank is out for the count. So much for that.

He turns to me, and I act. I take a deep breath and release my telekinesis towards him. It's like an invisible bubble pushes him back. I swipe my hand and he flies up into the ceiling. It was like my power followed my hand. Wherever I pointed He would go. Soon he's bouncing against the walls like a ball in a pinball machine.

 _Hanks down!_ I try to contact at least one of the other students.

 _Jean?_ I hear Scott's voice in my head.

 _Yes_. I think I'm at Cerebro's doors- Black spots danced around my vision, I was tiring out quickly. Too quickly.

 _I'm sending Bobby and Warren down, the only one left up here is this toad guy. Are you okay?_

 _Yes_. even my mind voice sounds small and fragile.

"Let me go!" Quicksilver yells. His feet move under him, but he can't move. "BLOB! AVALANCHE! HELP!"

I push my hand out and I feel my feet leave the ground as he flies into the metal wall with such force that he leaves a deep indent in the metal plating. Blood drips from his nose and ears he slides down to the floor.

Warren runs down the hall, "Damn, Jean, you can fly?"

I fall to the ground. My foot twists under my body and a sharp pain shoots up from my ankle. I try to straighten it out, but the pain gets worse. My air catches in my chest, making it impossible to breathe.

Warren crouches down by me, "Are you okay?"

I nod, "Hank-" I start to say, my voice is barely even a whisper.

"He's fine. Oh man, Jean, this is serious I think." he puts his hand on my ankle. I flinch.

"Oh, Sorry," He says, putting his hand on my shoulder, "but _damn_ , you did good for not having any training."

That is the last thing I focus on. The pain becomes too overwhelming so that if there are voices, it sounds like I'm underwater. I feel something cold slip between my lips and I think I swallow. Then I go out completely.

* * *

When I wake up, the first thing I hear is a steady beeping and the air smells clean. I open my eyes a sliver and a bright, white light blinds me. It takes me a moment to realize that it is an overhead lamp and not heaven and that I did not die.

My eyes adjust and I turn my head. I'm definitely in a hospital. A mix of stainless steel and sanitary white surround me and my first thought was, _Did I dream the last year and a half?_ I frantically start looking around the room, trying to find anything to prove to myself that I'm not crazy and all the stuff really did happen. Then I see it, on a computer screen, the X in the circle. The symbol of the school.

I take a deep breath. Not only did I actually live through everything, I am still at the school.

A door opens and Moira comes in. Her red dress under a white lab coat and her high heels clicking on the floor as she steps. "Welcome back," She says, "How do you feel?"

"What happened?" I ask.

"Well, the Brotherhood attacked-"

"Yeah, but why did it affect me like this?" I wasn't sure how long I was actually out, but with my experience of being in comas, it felt like a while.

"You used a great amount of power, Dear, it drained you almost as soon as it started. Telekinesis has an odd way of raising your adrenaline while you use it. Thus when you stopped, your body needed rest, admittedly. It does not help that they boys, mainly Warren, thought it would help if he gave you some Benadryl. That knocked you out."

"They drugged me?" I ask.

"They meant well, but yes, they drugged you."

* * *

I had only been out for a few hours. My ankle heals fully about a week later. And that is when The Professor allows me in the Danger room with the rest. I had asked him once why I didn't even know about it, His reply was, "You were too innocent, I couldn't allow you to enter the war yet." I didn't understand what the war was. No one even knows about mutants yet. But one thing for sure, this is not a normal school. Then again, we are not normal students.

To Be continued.

 **Author's notes: Okay, I still kind of suck at writing fight scenes, lol. but anyway, I hope you all liked it! Rember comments, suggestions and critism are appriciated and always taken to heart. Anyhoo, see you all later!**


	6. Chapter 5

Another year passes and I have never been in such control of my powers.

Once again, I sit in the classroom, but this time with Warren. The Professor is talking about acids and bases and demonstrating with litmus paper and test tubes of different solutions.

I stare at the beakers in front of us, trying to figure out which one is ammonia. I grab the one closest to Warren and dip the slip of yellow paper into it. It turns blue.

"It worked! For a minute there I thought you were putting it in water." Warren whispers. I glare at him.

"Next try the Baking soda solution," Professor Xavier instructs. Warren takes a new piece of paper from the stack and places it in the cloudy liquid. When the slip turns blue a smile washes his face like he just discovered a cure for cancer and didn't just put a piece of paper into a beaker.

The Professor continues discussing the Ph scale, going on how acids are one through seven and bases are eight through fourteen. I pay attention to it until I hear crinkling beside me. I look over at Warren as he bites into a fudge pop. I raise my eyebrows and he shrugs, "What?" He asks, "My backpack is insulated." He points his toe to the gray and blue bag leaning against the table.

"That doesn't make it okay to sneak ice cream into class," I whisper.

"Why does it matter? We're in the back." He says.

The Professor stops talking for a moment, "Jean, Warren. Pay attention."

I nod and turn back to the chalkboard.

After class, I shouldered my backpack and leave the classroom. I hear footsteps and sense Warren coming up beside me.

"Hey," He says. He has a smudge of ice cream in the corner of his mouth, but his perfectly gelled hair and blue eyes make up for it. "So, my dad sent me two tickets to an awesome private club in Manhattan for tonight. I was wondering if a lady, such as yourself, would accompany me."

"Are you asking me out on a date?" I ask, "To a club?"

"Yeah." He winks, "I mean it's for people 21 and younger, they don't serve alcohol or anything. I think it might be a Karaoke bar or something. But it's private and hard to get into. So, what do you say?

"Yeah, that might be fun," I say, After all, what other time will I get into a private karaoke bar, with an attractive guy like Warren. "What time?"

"Oh really, you want to? My dad's jet will be picking us up about six," He grins. "See you then!"

He runs off, almost hitting his wings off the wall. As he turns, I catch him pumping his fist in the air. This will definitely be an interesting night.

I find myself in the kitchen after class, watching my cup of hot water spin in the microwave. I sense Bobby and Scott come in and sit at the table.

"So, you and Warren, huh?" Bobby asks with a little smirk.

I pour the contents of the paper pack into my mug and stir, "It's one date," I say, "And it's just because his dad sent him two tickets."

"He could have asked me," Bobby says, "But he asked the most attractive girl in school."

"I'm the only girl in school," I remind him, although I feel my cheeks heat up a little.

"Whatever, but he totally likes you. But I mean, who doesn't?"

"Stop," I say, taking a sip of my too-hot hot cocoa.

Bobby grins again, "You're only denying it because you know it's true,"

"She said stop," Scott snaps, "so that means stop."

Bobby gets up and makes himself nachos from last night's dinner and Scott starts pouring over his Social Studies textbook. I drain the last of my drink and I leave the kitchen, putting the empty mug in the sink as I go. As I pass Scott, I sense anger, but I don't dare probe his mind to find out why.

* * *

A few hours later, I'm in Worthington's private jet flying to Manhattan. Warren sits beside me, dressed in a purple dress shirt, with a letterman style jacket strapping his wings down, and a pair of jeans. I'm wearing a navy sleeveless dress underneath my leather jacket with a pair of gold strapped sandals. I basically googled 'things to wear to a club' and copied my look off of a picture.

"You should wear your hair up like that more often, it really shows off your eyes," Warren says.

"Thanks," I bat at my high ponytail that I quickly did about five minutes before leaving. I know when I take it down though I'm going to look like a red-headed Hermione Granger.

The pilot, a nice guy, probably mid-sixties wearing a suit and tie, calls back to us, "Two minutes until landing, Master Warren."

"For the last time, Gus, you are not Alfred, there is no reason for you to call me Master Warren. Warren will work."

"My apologies, Ma... er, Warren." The Pilot flicks on a few buttons and we begin to land.

"So," Warren turns back towards me, "Ever been on a private jet?"

"I've never been on a regular plane before," I say, trying to fix the hem of my dress that kept curling in on itself.

"Really? I've been riding planes since I was like… Actually, my mom had me in a plane over Berlin," he smiles then looks away from me, but as he turns his smile turns into a frown.

"Hey, what's up?" I ask. He doesn't answer.

The plane touches down on a runway and Gus steps out from the pilot seat and to the door, which he opens with a few clicks of a button, and allows us to get out.

A neon green sports car is waiting for us. Warren holds the door opens and I climb into the backseat, he follows, whacking his head off the doorframe as he does so, swears under his breath, then introducing me to the chauffeur, Oliver.

We pull out onto the busy street of Manhattan at top speed. Oliver swerves in between cars and runs through a red light. I clench the seat belt trying to stay upright as Warren sways violently side to side. "He only does this to keep away paparazzi," he says.

"You get paparazzi?" I ask.

"Yeah, well my dad does. He's big in the business field so anywhere he goes he has news cameras, microphones, interviewers. Everyone waiting to see what big announcement he's coming out with next. It doesn't matter where he goes either. A news helicopter stocked us when we went to my aunt's funeral a few years ago. It sucks."

I can only imagine having cameras following me everywhere I go. I've seen a few pictures that paparazzi took of celebrities doing embarrassing things. I'd hate seeing pictures of myself taking a shower or something on the front page of a gossip magazine.

The car finally comes to a stop in front of a building. A sign on the front says, _Musical Munchies, for students 21 and under._ The windows are tinted so I can't see anything inside.

Warren gets out and once again, keeps the door open for me while I climb out. When we get to the awning of the building, Oliver drives off.

The door is automatic, and as they slide open, it reveals every kid's dreamland. Arcade games line the walls, with a bowling alley, an Iccie stand, laser tag and dance floor in the main area. A lounge full of multicolored couches is situated next to an area full of tables. A stage in the very center of the room has colored lights dancing around above it. Kids of all age scatter the arena. Most of them are in fancy rich-people clothes, playing games, eating, or just lounging with an Iccie. I definitely feel awkward and out of place here.

Before we get to have fun though, we have to go through a bunch of security. We go through metal detectors, those spinny bars that they have at subways, and finally, we stop at a desk, where Warren hands the woman the tickets and she returns with unlimited cards for us to do anything with.

"Now what?" I ask.

"Come with me," Warren grabs me by the upper arm and pulls me to a claw machine full of rubber spiky balls.

After five rounds, Warren finally grabs a pink spiky ball (he was aiming for the green) and hands it to me, which my clammy hands then drop and it rolls down a step and into the laser tag room. It's easy to find since it lights up, but damn I was embarrassed.

Warren wins a backpack from the next claw machine, that he then stores the spiky ball in.

After awhile, we get bored with the video games and go head to head playing laser tag, which I totally beat his butt at. He claims I used my powers with one game, then the next round he claimed he let me win. Yeah right.

"Dinner time?" he asks.

"Sure."

People begin to sing karaoke as he sits down at the tables. The first one, a blond girl in a hot pink dress and a tiara, starts singing _a Whole New World_ from Aladdin and totally butchered it. The next three kids seem to be way too high on sugar because as soon as they all started to sing, they bounce around the stage like a basketball.

"Thanks for inviting me," I say, "It must be awesome to get into places like this all the time."

"No problem," Warren says. But he doesn't smile.

"Hey, what's up?" I ask.

"It's just, I've gotten into all these fun clubs and everything my entire life, but I've also moved around the world so much that I didn't really have any friends until I came to school. At home, everyone is nice to me, but it's because my dad pays them to be."

"Oh,"

"I saw you and your family when they brought you here last year. All the hugs, and tears, it was sweet. My dad didn't even come when I came, he made Oliver do it."

"What about your mom?" As soon as I ask I know I made a mistake.

"She died in a car wreck when I was four," He says. A silence lingers at the table for a moment, but then he says, "but anyways, wait until you have the chicken strips, they're awesome!"

The Waiter brings out our order as a girl about nineteen steps out on stage. The entire place starts to chant _Dazzler! Dazzler! Dazzler!_

The girl named Dazzler has dark brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, blue eyes and wears a jean jacket over a neon turquoise dress. She waves at the crowd as the music starts.

 _Do you ever feel like a plastic bag_

 _Drifting through the wind_

 _Wanting to start again_

Instantly, everyone is starstruck. Warren taps my knee, "Do you think that's why her name is Dazzler?"

I laugh and dip a fry in ketchup.

 _Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin_

 _Like a house of cards_

 _One blow from caving in_

 _Do you ever feel already buried deep_

 _Six feet under scream_

 _But no one seems to hear a thing_

 _Do you know that there's still a chance for you_

 _'Cause there's a spark in you_

 _You just gotta ignite the light_

 _And let it shine_

 _Just own the night_

 _Like the Fourth of July_

Then, sparkles of light start popping around her like fireworks. No, not around her; from her. Me and Warren exchange glances. She's a mutant.

 _'Cause baby you're a firework_

 _Come on show 'em what your worth_

 _Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"_

 _As you shoot across the sky-y-y_

"Should we call the Professor?" I ask. He doesn't get to answer.

There is a loud crackling noise and two wires of electricity shoot above the crowd and hits Dazzler in the stomach. She collapses to the ground as the rest of the kids scatter from the scene.

Warren and I stand up and search the panicked crowd for the owner of the taser. Two men in suits with red armbands stand in the sea of kids fleeing to the doors.

"Mutant Scum!" one yells and turns off the taser.

"I didn't think normal people knew about us yet," I whisper to Warren.

He shrugs, "Who knows," He takes out his phone and texts Oliver, "he should be here in five minutes, let go!"

I look around my shoulder as he grabs my hand and pulls me into the crowd. Dazzler is being helped up by several security guards.

We push our way towards the doors, that more security is helping kids out of.

When it's our turn to leave, I watch Warren's wings twitch under his jacket. I squeeze his hand _Calm down_. I tell him telepathically. _We're almost out._ To be honest, I am terrified, my heart is in my throat and my hands are extra clammy against Warren's, but I learned to control my fears awhile ago.

We finally get out on the sidewalk and I spot the green sports car a few blocks down. We run down to it and Oliver beeps.

"What's going on?" He asks.

"I have no clue," Warren huffs.

"Well, let's not find out until it's on the news tomorrow." Oliver hits the gas and we zoom out of the parking lot.

We skip the jet completely and instead turn onto the freeway. The car swerves in between traffic again and it's not long before he is turning onto the North Salem exit.

"How doesn't he get tickets?" I ask.

"He just never gets caught," Warren replies.

The car slows at the gate, we get out and start down the driveway to the lite windows of the school.

When we get in, Bobby is waiting in the lobby for us. He smirks at us and I look down. Warren's and my fingers are intertwined. We both release at the same time and exchange awkward glances.

"So, how was it?" Hank comes into the room, followed by a ticked-off Scott.

"It was great!" Warren says, "We played Laser tag, ate some awesome pizza, listened to some karaoke. The night did take a turn when two guys came and tasered the singer and yelled _Mutant Scum_!" He does a terrible interpretation of the guy.

"What?" Scott asks, "How do they even know about us?"

"We knew it was only a matter of time, Scott," The Professor wheels in, his eyebrows furrowed. "Were you two caught?"

"No," I say, "They only went after Dazzler."

"Dazzler's a mutant?" Bobby asks, "Like, _the_ Dazzler?"

"You know her?" I ask.

"She's a Youtube star," He answers with a grin, "A smoking hot Youtube star."

"Warren, Jean, please come to my office," Professor Xavier says.

In his office, we sit in front of his desk in plastic, molded chairs. "Would you allow me to probe your minds?" The Professor asks.

We agree, and after a short amount of time, Professor Xavier says, "The friends of humanity."

"Huh?"

"The men who came tonight were the Friends of Humanity. It's an anti-mutant organization. I was afraid this would happen," He pushes his fingertips together, forming a triangle in his lap.

"What's happening?" I ask.

He hesitates, then says, "The war on Mutantkind has begun, it won't be very long until our identities are discovered."

To be continued

 **Author's Notes: Let me know what you think so far :) Hopefully I'll have the next chapter up Wednesday. Cheers!**


	7. Chapter 6

Love; it's what everyone longs for, if only it wasn't so freaking hard.

Another year passes and not a great deal happens. Nothing involved in the 'war' that Professor Xavier talked about happens, and the only battle we have is trying to get all the homework that the Professor is assigning us.

Warren and I went on one other date after the first, but never again. Not that I don't like him, just I don't think in 'that' way. I've grown closer to everyone, but especially Scott. I find myself watching him in training, the way he directs the rest of the team, the way he has perfect aim whenever he blasts something, the way the sweat beads on his forehead, the way his uniform fits snugly against his muscular body the way-

"Jean, watch out!" Scott shoots something behind me, I turn around to watch a robot collapse behind me, "it was targeting you! pay attention."

"Oh, sorry," I say.

"It's your life if it hit you, don't apologize to me," Scott turns around on the spot and blasts another robot.

"We're being surrounded, Cyke, what's your grand plan now?" Warren yells from a few feet up. He grasps a pellet gun in his hand. Since he's the only one without defensive powers, he's training with a gun. but for some odd reason, Professor Xavier doesn't trust him with a real gun in training.

"Hit and run until they're all down," Scott commands. I send a psychic beam towards one, which sends it a few feet back, then I lift it with telekinesis and disassemble it.

Bobby freezes a few, then Scott blasts them. Hank smashes some, it seems like it's all going really well, until, _buzz_. The robots we were fighting fade away, leaving us in an empty, metallic-walled room that is danger room.

"Damn, we almost had it that time," Scott hisses.

"Same session, tomorrow at two," the Professor's voice comes over the speaker, "but for now, enjoy your free time. I now have a conference I must get to."

Warren and Bobby race out of the Danger room, Hank leaps over the lines on the gym floor, but Scott and I linger behind. He puts a hand on my shoulder, "sorry that I yelled at you back there," he says.

"Oh, no problem," I say awkwardly. At the time it didn't seem like a big deal, after all, I did get distracted (by him, but nevertheless) he was just looking after me, protecting me.

"You are really good at it," He says. He sounds just as awkward as I feel, "But anyway, see you later," he runs off, but I stand there lost in thought until the motion sensor lights shut off.

* * *

As the saying goes, April showers bring May flowers, but I wonder what April storms bring. The lights in the mansion have flickered on and off a few times, but it isn't until we are all invested in _Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull_ does the power go completely out. Thunder shakes the windows and lightning is our only source of light until Warren takes out his cell phone and Hank lights a candle.

"We should do something, like truth or dare," Bobby says from his place on the couch.

I hadn't played truth or dare since I had a sleepover with Annie, and that was over five years ago. I agree reluctantly, not knowing how it'll be with four guys, and we start.

Bobby is first, "Warren, truth or dare?" he asks (I had forgotten how this game works, that's how long ago it's been)

"Dare, Duh."

"Okay, I dare you to go to the kitchen and eat the grossest thing you can find."

"I'm making this clear right now, I am _not_ doing the Cinnamon Challenge," Warren gets up and we follow him down the hall to the kitchen, where Bobby selects what he thinks is the grossest thing, a bouillon cube. Warren unwraps it and pops it into his mouth, bites into it, and instantly spits in out in the sink.

"That was seriously the worst thing ever," he says, then he grins, "next, Jean, truth or dare?"

"Um... Truth," I hesitate.

"Don't worry, you wouldn't have lost your virginity if you had said dare, but truth it is. Which one of us would you rather kiss?"

"I'm not going to answer that," I say, even though I knew the answer as soon as he asked.

"Come on! just for fun, who'd it be?"

"Nope."

"Seriously Jean, who would it be? Tell us!"

"I'm not going to," I say, but I can't help smiling at his persuading methods.

"please please pretty please tell us! I ate a hell flavored cube, the most you could do is tell us which one of us you'd kiss!"

I say it so fast that I even shock myself, "Scott," Then I regret it. A ton of thoughts starts to go through my brain, what if he doesn't like me? What if he doesn't like me now that I admitted to liking him? did I really admit to liking him or did I just say I would prefer to kiss him?

"Oooooo!" Bobby says, "Jean and Scott, Sitting in a tree-"

"Shut up, Bobby!" Warren snaps, "now, Jean it's your turn."

we continue with the game until it's Warren's turn to ask the question. "Scott," he says, "truth or dare."

"Dare," Scott says.

"kiss Jean."

"What?" we say in unison. There is no way he just said that I mean, we are 15, but there is no way he would actually expect us to kiss.

"She said she'd rather kiss you, so go ahead, kiss her." he grins at us. "On the lips."

"Warren," Hank Warns from across the table.

I expected Scott to back out of the challenge, I mean, I've never probed his mind to find out how he feels about me, but I feel like a kiss is a bit much for someone like Scott, right?

I look at him just as he's leaning in. _How is he not backing out of this?_ I feel my breath catch in my throat as I lean in too. I can't help it. Then our lips touch and heat spreads through my body. He pulls away. And I look down at my lap, knowing a huge grin was washed across my face, not to mention my cheeks probably the same shade of red as my hair.

And that, Ladies and Gentlemen, was my first kiss. Also, the end of the game, because Scott gets up and runs from the kitchen.

"Well," Bobby breaks the silence, "that was very entertaining on so many levels. So, Who wants some cold, leftover pizza?"

* * *

The lights come back on before dinner, but Scott doesn't show up.

"Scott usually doesn't miss a meal, is he okay?" Moira asks.

She must have suspected something was up because then she asks what we did while the power was out.

Warren grins, "We played a few rounds of truth or dare, but I don't know. I Haven't seen him since."

"You didn't make him eat strawberries or anything right? Because you know he's allergic." Moira says as she passes potatoes to Bobby, who takes a giant scoop and drenches them in gravy. When he passes them to Warren, he makes a face at the gravy like he was about to vomit. Apparently, the bouillon cube was still fresh in his mind.

"No," Hank assures, "he told me he just had a headache." he smiles at me when he says this, almost telling me, _He's fine, I know how concerned you are about that awkward teenager._

Dinner continues normally, and Afterwards, we all continue on our way, The Professor comes back with the news that the Friends of Humanity were trying to convince the senator that mutants exist, and were escorted off the grounds. But he says it's only a matter of time before we're found out and we have to be prepared. It's not very reassuring because afterward, it makes the news that the United Kingdom is taking extreme precautions because of an 'extraterrestrial attack' on Buckingham Palace. A blurry photo shows a being changing shape from a six foot human to a small French bulldog that runs off, holding something sparkly in between his teeth. Once again, it's only a matter of time before the mutant population is discovered.

* * *

After everyone's in bed, I sneak down to the kitchen for some ice cream. When I get to the door, I sense Scott inside, and I hesitate even going in.

I turn the knob slowly and peek inside, Scott sits at the table, a paper plate of mashed potatoes and gravy in front of him. he looks up at me when I come in, but doesn't say anything. I go to the freezer and take out some Chocolate Brownie Swirl ice cream and begin to scoop some into a bowl.

I sit at the table across from Scott.

"How's your head?" I ask, "Hank said your head hurt and that's why you weren't at dinner."

"And you believed him?" the roughness of his voice startles me

"well no, but-"

"Why me?" He asks, it's sudden and throws me completely off guard, "I mean, Hank's freaking intelligent and obviously is going to have like a million PhDs, Warren has money and even Bobby is charming in his own way, and you picked me?" he stabs his fork through his plate.

"I don't know Scott, I just..." I couldn't form the words. I couldn't tell him how I felt about him because I don't even know. Why does this all have to be so confusing?

"Just what?" he snaps, "I can't even control my powers, Jean, and-" he stops.

"What?" I ask.

"I don't want to hurt you," his voice cracks, and I know it wasn't because of puberty, he tries to hide it by taking a mouthful of potatoes, but I know.

"You haven't before," I say, grabbing his hand from across the table.

"Because I didn't get close to you. To anyone." I don't trust myself. I don't trust my damn eyes."

I squeeze his hand, "but you have your glasses, you'll be fine."

"But for how long? How long will these damn things contain my power? If I lose control I don't want to hurt you."

I look at him, close up, I can see a scar going from the front of his ear and running along his hairline to his top of his forehead, some of it is blocked by his glasses. "I'm not afraid of your powers," I say, "but I know how it is to have a power you can't control. You should try having Telepathy, it's awful sometimes, but I learn to make due."

He looks down at the table, "I'm sorry I made you do that," he says, "with the game and everything."

"Hey, I didn't mind, I mean it was just a stupid game dare." I lie, I totally did care, I cared the entire day, I mean, I had my first kiss with the guy I might (I mean probably) have a crush on.

"Right," he says, "but it was nice."

Okay, I'm glad it wasn't just me who thought it was great. It was better than I ever thought a kiss could be.

"Yeah," I say, completely lost in thought.

Scott stands up and puts his plate in the garbage. I look down at my untouched, melting ice cream, thinking the conversation was over and I could eat it before it all turns into a puddle. I'm wrong.

He sits next to me and his hand brushes my cheek, "were you serious though? You actually like me?"

"Yeah."

"I'm glad it's not just a schoolboy crush then," he smiles and leans in again. As our lips touch again, I feel every muscle in my body relaxing towards him. _This is nice_ , I think. Sure, there may be an anti-mutant organization that is forming and trying to convince the government of our existence, and sure there are nightmares, and death, and sickness in the world, but the world doesn't matter, The only thing that matters is this moment sitting here with Scott beside me, twirling the hair at the back of my neck with his fingers while our foreheads are pressed together.

To be continued

 **Author's notes: Well, that was a fun chapter to write. I actually based the main thing on an actual life experience of mine, except I was more in the place of Hank and my two dear friends were in the place of Jean and Scott (Always the bridemaid, never the bride I guess). Anyway, I have been looking forward to writing this chapter since I started writing this fic. My biggest obsession is the Summer/Grey bloodline (yep, I'm Mr. Sinister, I took the quiz that proved it :p) so I always enjoy writing things that are about them. I'm very excited to write the next chapter, **Spoiler allert** a huge plot twist is in the making. Anyway, I hope all of you beautiful readers are doing well! See you all later!**


	8. Chapter 7

Oh yes, Nightmares; the bane of my existence.

 _I look around the pitch black room. Well, at least I think it's a room it's too dark to really tell. I hear footsteps behind me but I can't sense anyone… or anything for that matter. "Oh, yes, the precious little X-man," A raspy voice speaks from behind me, The kind of voice that only resides in nightmares because if it were in real life, it would belong to an being that is evil beyond measure. I turn around, but of course, I see only darkness. "It's a shame they won't be able to find you, isn't it? Because by the time the lights turn back on, you'll be either my follower or dead." I feel a cold, claw-like hand squeeze my left shoulder and I hear loud, deep breathing close to my face. "Don't worry, Jean, the pain will only be unbearable for a few moments, then you won't be able to feel anything at." I hear a voice echo from a distance, I hear it again, this time it's closer and audible, "Jean?" I take a deep relieved, it was Scott, He'll be able to find me. I open my mouth to speak, but the only sound that comes is a bloodcurdling scream as pain fills my body. My knees buckle under me and fall to the ground. My legs curl into my chest as I try to get in a position that doesn't feel like death, It doesn't work. But then the pain begins to ease, but it came with a cost, Black dots dance across my vision. Then there is nothing._

A scream leaves my mouth as I sit up straight in bed. My heart pounds in my throat as I curl my knees up to my chest. It was just a dream, I try to tell myself. There's a knock on my bedroom door. I assume it's the Professor, but the voice that follows is Scott's, "Jean? Are you okay?"

"Yeah," My voice sounds weak, and it cracked when I spoke.

"That didn't seem too convincing," He replies, "Can I come in?"

Okay, a 15-year-old boy asks to come into my room at night after I had a nightmare. That should seem like a sure way to get into trouble, but I know Scott.

"I guess," I say.

The door opens and in the last moments before he appears I wipe my tears out of my eyes and check myself to make sure I'm in appropriate clothes, Tank top and a pair of shorts, good enough.

"Nightmare?" Scott asks, he stands in the striped light that comes from the blind-covered window, revealing his Star Wars pajama pants and black T-shirt.

I nod, "How did you know?"

"Let's see, three-thirty in the morning, and you scream like someone was murdered. I figured since the school has top security, it was a nightmare." he sits on the edge the bed beside me and puts his hand on my trembling knee, "Want to talk about it?"

"No," I say mustering up enough bravery and self-esteem to talk normally, "I get them a lot."

"Have you talked to the professor about them?" he asks.

"A little bit."

"Do you think you need to talk to him about it more?"

"No I'm fine," I insist, trying to ignoring the lump in my throat.

"You don't look it," He says. It's then that I realize I still had tears running down my cheeks.

I wipe my cheeks, completely embarrassed. I broke my rule that I've had for 5 years; no crying in front of people.

"You don't have to hide it from me, Jean, your only human, well for a lack of a better term," he puts his arm around me and I look up at him. His red tinted glasses cast shadows on the rest of his face, making it impossible to see his expression.

I give in and fall against his shoulder, he shifts so he's further on the bed, So," He says, "what about the dream?'

"It was dark," I say, "And someone was after us, or me I guess." I continue telling him about the dream only having to pause once because of getting overwhelmed. I also leave out little details like that I heard him calling my name. I don't want to scare him off by telling him he was in my nightmare. When I finish I look up at him, he is biting his lower lip like he does when taking an exam. "Sounds awful," He finally says.

"No kidding," I say.

Some time passes while I sit, curled up next to Scott, the only noise is the air conditioner in the corner and rain hitting off the window. My eyelids grow heavy and I shut them, knowing I was about to fall asleep, but I fear falling asleep. Then he breaks the silence, "I think nightmares have a one a night deal, so if you want to sleep, I don't think they'll come back." he kisses the top of my hair. I do fall asleep, confident that he's right.

* * *

The next thing I know I'm being shaken awake.

"Jean?" Scott whispers.

"Whas goin on?" I ask, not opening my eyes.

Then I'm awake enough to hear the Professor's voice over the intercom, "Students, please come to my office immediately."

When I do open my eyes and light pours from the window. Scott pulls his arm out from around me and I sit up, glancing over at my alarm clock as I do so, 6:30. Why is the Professor calling us up so early on a Saturday?

Scott grins as he stands up and stretches.

"What?" I ask.

"you're adorable when you first wake up."

"Huh?"

"You just seemed so confused, it was cute." He shrugs and turns towards the ajar door.

"Thanks, Scott," I say sarcastically as I follow him out into the hall.

You don't know someone until you see how they respond to being woken up early on a weekend. Hank and Scott are the only one's who seem bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Bobby comes up, with his eyelids droopy and his t-shirt on backward. Warren is nowhere to be seen.

We crowd into Professor Xavier's office, he sits behind his desk in his pressed suit and brightly shined shoes. Across from him is a brunette girl who looks about my age. She wears a pair of worn sweatpants with a bleach-stained Maroon 5 T-shirt and a dirty Nikes sneakers. Her large dark brown eyes scan us over, I can't help but notice she lingers on Scott, looking him over thoroughly while he shifts uneasily on the spot.

"This is Angelica Jones, your new classmate," The Professor speaks gently, "Angelica, this is Robert Drake, Henry McCoy, Jean Grey, and Scott Summers," he motions to each of us.

The door opens and a shirtless Warren comes in, nursing a mug of coffee as he takes his place by Bobby.

"And this is Warren Worthington," The Professor adds.

Warren yawns as he puts his hand up in a salute, "How's it going?" he asks.

Angelica stares at his spread wings with curiosity.

"Scott, would you be able to give her the tour, I have a meeting I have to go to," The Professor smiles warmly and Scott nods, "sure thing Professor."

Angelica stands up and struts towards Scott. She runs her fingers under his chin and he tenses up. I glare at them as they leave the office.

Bobby taps my shoulder and I follow them out into the hall, where they burst into laughter.

"What?" I ask.

"Your jealous of that _flirt_?" Warren marveled.

"I'm not jealous," I say, "Scott and I aren't even-"

"Oh please!" Bobby punched me playfully in the arm, "There is no way you and four-eyes aren't a thing! We saw you yesterday, the loving glances across the classroom, the way you watched him when he was in the danger room. You love him."

"I do not," I lie.

"You literally said that you'd rather kiss him the day before last," Warren points out, "and I saw him go into your bedroom last night, you can't say you don't love him."

"Wait, he went into your bedroom last night?" Hank asks me, his voice twisted with concern, "That's against school rules if the Professor find out that-"

"He just checked on me after I had a nightmare," I explain, "We didn't do anything."

"But if you did, can I be the godfather?" Bobby asks, "I'd be an awesome godfather."

"Bobby!" I moan. "I'm not going to discuss this anymore." and I storm off to the kitchen for breakfast.

I'm pouring milk over my cereal when Scott and Angelica come in.

"And this is the kitchen. Professor X usually keeps it pretty stock, I suggest using it to your advantage as a midnight snack," Scott says. Angelica bats her eyelashes and smile wide, revealing perfect teeth, "do you ever come for midnight snacks?" She asks.

"Uh, sometimes, we all do actually," Scott shrugs. As they leave the kitchen, he smiles at me. I don't meet his eyes. He frowns and tilts his head slightly before Angelica wraps her arm around his, "Where next?" She asks.

Scott pulls away from her, "I guess the second floor." he looks uncomfortable, but I can't help being mad.

I feel my face flush hot as they leave the kitchen. I angrily stab my spoon into my rice crispies. Okay, I am jealous of her. I have never been jealous of anyone. So why is this flirt bothering me so much?

I avoid Scott for the rest of the day. I do some homework in the common room, I Skype with my sister, who goes on about her engagement to Paul, the video game addict while painting her nails. I make a brownie in a mug, which Warren then steals half of, then I go up to my bedroom before dinner to finish up an essay on the pros and cons of space research. As I'm typing my essay out, there is a knock on the door, I sense Scott and ignore him.

"Jean, can I come in?"

I don't answer. Anger begins to bubble up inside me, making me curl my fingers into a fist against my keyboard.

"Jean? Seriously I know you in there, I want to talk, can I please come in?"

Then I completely lose it, I slam closed my laptop and storm to the door. When I swing the door open Scott steps back a few feet, his eyebrows raised high above his glasses.

"What do you want to talk about, your _new_ friend?" I demand.

"Wait, are you talking about Angelica? I don't know where you got that idea from, but I do not like her." he puts his hand on my crossed arms, "I promise."

"But how do I know that-"

"Jean, there's nothing you need to be jealous of. You can probe my mind, I don't care, but just know there's nothing to be jealous of." He comes closer to me and I step away.

"But what if you don't really like me," I blurt out, "what if the only reason you had a crush on me was because I was the only girl, but now that there is another-"

"Jean, Angelica is literally down in the kitchen trying to seduce Hank, I'm pretty sure she's just a slut." He puts his hand on my shoulder.

"Really?" Okay, I'm embarrassed now. I look down at my shoes.

"Really, she's kind of crazy. I don't think she'll last long," He smiles and embraces me.

"Sorry I didn't trust you," I say into his shoulder.

"No problem. Now you know how I felt when you went on a date with Warren."

I pull away from him and cock my head to the side, "That was like two years ago...oh," I remember senses anger from him when we got back from the club, I didn't think much about it...until now. He was jealous of Warren, how didn't I see it before. Why didn't I probe his mind then?

"Anyway, the Professor's back, he wants to have a bonfire tonight in the quad, something about a well-deserved vacation," He lets out a short laugh, "I expect you to be there because there is no way I'll survive a night down there with the rest."

I tell him I'll be there and go on to finish my essay, but I have a hard time focusing, so I go for a walk to clear my mind. That the only thing I don't do.

I walk past a bedroom and hear a muffled sob inside. I hesitate even checking it out because I know it must be Angelica's room, the cry was too feminine to be anyone else. But slut or no slut, she was upset and I knew I'd feel guilty later if I don't check on her. So I creep towards the door and knock gently.

"Yes?" a very stuffy, hoarse voice responds.

"Hey, are you alright?" I ask.

The reply is another sob.

"Can I come in?" I ask, completely shocked that I ask.

"I'm fine, really." She answers.

"Are you sure?"

"No."

I open the door, revealing a bedroom that is the same as mine, but without the knick-knacks and clutter, Angelica sits on the window seat, her back towards the glass, knees pulled up to her chest and head buried in her knees; a position I know only too well.

"What's up?" I ask, making my way to her.

She doesn't respond, she only shifts slightly, making room for me to sit.

I squeeze onto the bench, "Are you homesick?" I ask.

She pops her head up. Hair sticks to her cheeks and lips from tears, "Homesick?" she asks, "what's that?"

"It's when you miss home," I say, "I had it the first couple of weeks I was here, it gets better though."

"No," she shakes her head, "I can't miss something I never had."

"Oh," I say, her last comment leaving me speechless.

"My parents weren't great, and when they found out about my powers, they sort of kicked me to the curb. But then I found this place," She spreads her arms out motioning to her room, but revealing cuts on her wrists and inner arms. When she notices me looking at them, she quickly pulls her arms to her body, "I fell," She says. I can tell she's lying, but I don't push.

"So," I say, trying to forget about the way she treated Scott earlier, "What's your powers?"

She spreads her fingers, palms up, and a small ball of fire forms in her hand. "I'm a firebender," She jokes.

I laugh, "that's really cool. I have telepathy."

"Like, can you read my mind?" she asks.

"Yeah, something like that," I never considered it mind-reading, more like entering one's mind.

"How long have you had it?"

"Oh, about five and a half years," I estimate.

"I've only had mine for a month, I kept it well hid until I caught our kitchen on fire. Big mistake," she puts her legs down and smooths out her t-shirt, which she has since changed. It's now a black shirt with white letters spelling, Hakuna Matata.

"You like Lion King?" I ask.

"Yeah," she looks down at her shirt.

"Me too. I like Scar."

"Oh my gosh, me too, I thought I was an awful person for liking him. Did we just become best friends?"

"I think so."

"Do you need help unpacking?" I offer, nodding towards her suitcase on the bed.

"Actually yeah," Angelica smiles, "If you don't mind."

For the next several minutes, I help her organize her closet, Most of her T-Shirts and pants get hung up because she refused to use her dresser for anything but the extra blankets from the window seat. Then, Scott comes in, "Hey, there you are," He says, "Dinner's ready." He looks at me with a smile, then leaves the bedroom.

"Wait, are you two a thing?" Angelica asks.

"Ah, maybe, it's complicated," I admit.

"Oh my god, that's why you seemed so mad at me earlier. I am so sorry! I swear I'm not a flirt or anything, I just wanted to seem like a bad girl." She frowns.

"Hey, no problem," I say with a small smile, "Now, let's go get some dinner, I think Moira is making Quesadillas."

* * *

After dinner, we go outside for a bonfire, brought to us by Angelica.

The sun was just going down while Warren tells a supposive scary story about a goat named Jimmy. Bobby, who sat furthest away from the fire, leans towards me, "Does this story seem scary to you?" He whispers. I shake my head as Scott hands me an s'more.

Everything seems to be going well, Warren finishes his story (spoiler alert, Jimmy the goat gets turned into dog food) and Bobby serenades us with his interpretation of the Doctor who themes song. Basically, he just WEEEEE-WOOOOO WEEE-WOOO-WEEEs a lot.

Then, I feel a sharp pain in my mind. A bright light comes from the forest in front of me, and Scott stands up. "What the…?" Then, a girl comes out from the trees, She has bushy, blond hair, blue eyes, and she wears a worn Winnie the Pooh t-shirt with black pants. There is a large scar going across her face, but she still looks too familiar.

"Who are you?" Scott shouts.

The girl steps closer to us, "I'm Annie. Annie Richardson."

To Be Continued

 **Author's notes: So, what do you all think of the plot twist? I was looking forward to writing this chapter, so I hope you all enjoyed! Comments are welcome!**


	9. Chapter 8

Okay, this is insane. People don't just come back from the dead, do they?

The girl who looks and claiming to be Annie crosses her arms in front of her, "Sure, I just came out of your wood all of the sudden, but you're acting like I just said Lord Voldemort is back," She says.

Warren steps up, a half-eaten s'more forgotten in his hand, "So um, why you here?"

She brushes hair out from in front of her face and tucks it behind her ear, revealing a small metal plate on the side of her neck. "I am in much need of the X-Men's help," she sounds like this has been rehearsed several times until the words have no meaning to her, "A being beyond you imagination has been awoken, and the weight of his capture is on our shoulders. I must speak to Charles Xavier."

"How do we know you're not just trying to get into the school?" Scott asks, "You could be some spy from the Friends of Humanity," there are nods of agreement from the rest.

"Jean knows you can trust me. Don't you?" Her eyes flash with anxiety as she waits for my reply. "Jeannie, _please_!" She begs, "You know me! You know you do"

"I...I use too. I think," I admit. The truth is I don't know, "Annie Richardson was my best friend until she was hit by a car when we were ten. She supposedly died." My body trembles slightly as I say this.

Scott turns to me, his lips pressed to a straight line. He gives me a look like, _Probe her mind._

Angelica speaks up, her voice laced with confusion, "So, uh, what's going on?"

"Beats me," Bobby sits back down in his camp chair, crosses his legs, and begins to plays flappy bird on his phone, like stuff like this happens all the time.

Scott nods at me. I take a deep breath, and even though I don't like probing people's mind and would rather leave this up to the Professor, I enter her mind.

Soon enough I find my answer. In the midst of strange faces, machines, and battle plans, there are memories from our sleepovers, field trips from school, dinners at each other's houses, even the time we had a funeral in her backyard for her pet hamster, Hamilton. I jerk away from her mind, overwhelmed with everything I saw, and I sit down.

"Yeah," I say taking a deep breath, "We can trust her."

Hank raises his hand like he's trying to silence the already silent group, "Do you want to explain what exactly is going on, Jean?"

Everyone turns to me and I completely lose my train of thought. The entire situation blurs in my mind, but the only thing I know is that my best friend who I thought dead for over five years, in alive and well and just teleported into our forest.

"I can explain," Annie says, "So, about six years ago, I received mutant powers, Technopathy. No one knew about it. I could control computers, cell phones, any machines really, and could keep it well under control. Anyway, after about a six months, a group of people known as Hydra contacted my parents about my budding mutant powers. They offered me training, schooling, and safety with only one catch, my information had to be wiped off the face of the planet." She sits down on Warren's camp chair and folds her hands in her lap like she's telling a fairytale to a bunch of preschoolers. "My parents, of course, horrified by my powers, couldn't refuse. So, a week later we planned to fake my death. Jean, am I wrong to assume you remember this?"

"All too well," I say, "But I didn't realize you were _faking_ your death."

She ignores me, "So, on our way home from school, I dropped my lunchbox, which gave me a reason to stay behind while Jean went ahead of me. I had a drug in hidden in my box that slowed my pulse so I'd appear dead, and I popped that in my mouth as I crossed the street. We had my cousin, Jacob, he'd do anything for a buck, drive up to me and pretend to hit me, but it seemed to backfire when someone's mind decided to use telepathy for the first time," she gives a pointed look to me, "So, I had to use some acting skills. After Jean has passed out from the psychic connection she formed with me, My parents came and took me to Hydra. They had a fake funeral with a closed casket and-"

"I _felt_ you die," I interrupt, "Your pain nearly killed me, there is no way you faked it!"

Annie frowns, "Do you think having your pulse slow down is a walk in the park? You felt my pain because what I went through was painful. It wasn't death that you felt necessarily, but it was extreme pain and fear."

I feel my own pulse speed up as anger boils inside of me, Scott grabs my hand and squeezes, _Calm down,_ I hear his voice in my mind, _Hear her out completely before acting, okay?_ Right, he's the only who's trying to sound rational.

I nod and take a shaky, breath.

"Did this Hydra end up being any good?" Angelica asks.

"Oh no," Annie shakes her head, "They ended up being completely evil. They trained me all right, but in the way of fighting and war. They turned me into a cyborg-" she pulls her hair up and turns around, revealing more metal plates on her neck, and taught me to kill without mercy. I obeyed them until just recently when I realized what they were doing was wrong. I found out about a secret group Hydra formed with mutants, who call themselves the Quiet Assassins. They are planning to release a being known as Oblivion, and if he is, life as we know it will change completely."

"Will it be a good change?" Bobby asks.

"His name is _Oblivion_ for a reason," Annie says pointedly, "He will destroy the world to an oblivion."

"Sounds like a nice guy," Warren mumbles.

"What do you need from us, er… Miss Richardson?" Hank asks.

"Please don't call me that, I'm literally the same age as you." In the firelight, Annie's cheeks turned pink.

I didn't know if it was the scar going across her face, or the way her voice was twisted with wisdom, but she did seem older than 15, which makes the fact that she's only five months older than me really hard to sink in.

"Now, I think you should tell the whole thing to the Professor," Scott decides.

Annie nods and stands up, "I'll follow you then," she says. And we make our way into the Mansion.

* * *

The Professor tells us to stay in the lounge while he takes Annie to his study. Bobby curls up on the window seat, playing a heated game of solitaire on his phone. Angelica and Hank start a game of Chess, Warren sits next to the fireplace with his earbuds in, and I pace the room nervously as Scott watches.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He offers.

"No," there was nothing to talk about. My best friend from elementary school basically just came back from the dead, I just had to get through it by myself.

"What the hell is a psychic connection anyway?" Bobby asks without looking up from his phone.

"I'm not sure exactly, all I know is when she was supposedly hit by the car, Her pain filled my body because my telepathy connected us. I was put in a coma for six months, but we all thought she died. She had a tombstone at the cemetery and everything. I and my mom went to visit it before I came here."

"Am I the only one who had a somewhat decent experience when my powers kicked in?" Bobby asks.

We all ignore him.

"Here, Hydra is a terrorist organization that is based on an island literally called Hydra Island." Warren holds up his phone, showing a screen full of small print.

"Where did you find that?" Scott asks. His face is paler than usual.

"I hacked into SHIELD's database," Warren shrugs,"They have a huge section on Hydra."

"You can just hack into the SHIELD database on your phone? Won't you be detected?" Hank asks.

"Nah, my phone has super advanced software. Some dude who my dad knows did it. I also have unlimited data, texts, and calls." He shrugs and pops his earbuds back in.

"So, your friend was involved in a terrorist group," Scott says, "That sounds suspicious."

I sit down next to him, "I probed her mind, I know I can trust her," I say.

He rubs the back of his neck, "I don't know, Jean, If they had enough technology to turn her into a cyborg they'd have enough technology to block your powers from the truth."

"For someone who was begging me to trust you earlier, you sure don't have any trust in me," I cross my arms in front of my chest and don't say anything else.

Soon, the Professor comes in, followed by Annie, who looks anxiously around the lounge, not meeting anyone's eye.

"She's telling the truth," The Professor says, "However we cannot fight the Assassins without knowing anything about them."

"Where does that put us, Professor?" Scott asks.

"It appears we are going to need to go on an informational mission, Scott, and since it's a weekend, assemble the whole team. Even _I_ don't know what going to be waiting for you at the Hydra headquarters."

Angelica speaks up, "Uh, question, Professor, am I on the team? I mean I may be of good use." She raises her eyebrows slightly as she waits for the answer.

"No way!" Scott says, "You have zero training, it would be suicide. Professor, you're not going to let her go, are you?"

The Professor considers this, then the corner of his lips curl up just slightly, "I'm sure we all appreciate your concern for the team, Scott, but yes I am going to allow her. Like she said, her powers may come into great use, and there are enough trained people on the team to cover for her."

Scott hesitates, he usually isn't one to question the Professor's authority, but he says, "And what happens if she or someone else gets killed, I'll have to-"

Annie interrupts by stepping up so she's only a few inches from his face. She's the only one who has him beat with height, towering over him by at least three inches. "It's Scott right?" She asks.

Scott steps away from her, "yes."

"Well, Scott, I've seen a lot of heroes like you. Obsessed with self-sacrifice, not wanting what they consider the" weaker link" on the team because they could get a _boo-boo,_ but do you know what always happens to them?"

"Uh, no," Scott looks at me like he's trying to say, _help._

"They always end up being killed, but not because of self-sacrifice, but because they are too confident in themselves and take on too many enemies at once." The more she talks, the quieter her voice gets, until she's whispering.

Scott pushes past her and out of the room. I start to go after him, but the Professor shakes his head, "He'll be fine, Jean."

I stay where I stopped, in between the couch and the coffee table, but I can't help but think he's wrong. That Scott won't be okay. Not for the mission anyway.

"So…" Warren says, "Do we go get ready for the mission or do we just stay here and wait for Four-eyes to calm down?"

"Four-eyes or not we have to go," Annie snaps, "Oblivion isn't going to wait for him to calm down."

* * *

Twenty minutes later, we are loading into the Blackbird, the school's plane. Scott is piloting with Hank as the co-pilot, but he's quiet.

Warren walks along the rows of seats, occasionally sitting back in his own seat, only to get back up and pace more. "So, do you know anyone who's on this assassin team?" He asks Annie.

"Actually yeah, Some of them were trained with leader I knew before I went to Hydra. " She turns in her chair to look at me, "Do you remember Simon Niles?"

Air catches in my throat. "He tried to strangle me once," I say.

"Son of a bitch" Scott hisses from the front of the plane. I notice his grip on the joysticks tightens so his knuckles are white.

Annie nods slowly, picking at the collar of her uniform. The Professor insisted that she wears one, even though she said she'd be fine. The black leather looks strange on her. "Remember how he'd use to get his way with everything?" she asks, "He would basically brainwash the faculty. Hydra had him trained up so he can also shadow travel and now he has an insane healing factor."

"What's shadow traveling?" Hank asks.

"Have you ever seen a shadow move in the corner of your eye?" Annie asks.

We all nod.

"That is a shadow traveler. It is a group of trained individuals who travel within the shadows."

"So," Bobby begins, "we're going against some brainwashing, fast-healing peter pan and his evil gang of mutated lost boys. Great."

"Peterpan didn't travel by shadows, Bobby," Annie corrects.

"Ah, guys, were going down." Scott says.

He shifts the throttle and we go down into the great unknown of Hydra island.

To Be Continued.

 **Author's notes: well, what do you think? It was actually my friend Nat's idea to bring Annie back. So huge thanks to her! I forget to mention last chapter about Angelica Jones. I'm not sure if any of you have seen the old Spider-man and his amazing friends show, but if you did you would probably reconize her as Firestar. And acording to that, she was an X-Man when she was a kid, so I figured why not put her in here. Of course, I sort of shifted her story slightly. Anyway, comments, critism and any ideas are welcome!**


	10. Chapter 9

This seems impossible. No way can we break into Hydra without all being killed.

Annie is the first out of the plane. If she's nervous, she's really good at hiding it. Scott grabs my hand and interlaces his fingers with mine. "Are you okay?" he whispers.

"I'm fine," I allow my fingers to go limp, letting them fall away from his. Annie motions for me to come up to her. My legs feel like lead as I push my way past Warren and Angelica to get to her.

"Hmm?" I ask.

"See that tower over there." She points towards the closest tower from us. Surrounding the building is a thick wall with equally spaced towers. Each has a bright spotlight on the top. As we get closer, we have to weave in and out of the beams.

"In three minutes, the guards will switch out, Before the new one is settled, can you physically knock him out?"

"Um…" I had never done anything but read and communicated with my telepathy. I wasn't sure how "I guess."

"Excellent!" She mumbles a few things to herself, then she adds, "After that, we should be able to sneak in without anyone seeing. Cyclops will have to blast the cameras, but he'll be good at that. Then it should be easy sailing until we get to the main control room. Then it's up to Warren to get everything we need to know about the Assassins. He will know what he's doing, won't he?"

We both turn to see Warren fall flat on his face, wings spread out. He quickly stands up and looks around, his face red from embarrassment.

"I hope so," However, his last action didn't give me much hope.

Then we approach the tower and my heart stops. It all depends on me. I reach my fingertips to my temples and focus really hard. I find the guard's mind and dig around. Then there is nothing. I had no idea what I did, but it seemed to work.

Annie waves towards the small gate and that's the direction we go. As planned, Scott shoots the security camera, and Hank yanks the gate off the hinges. I flinch as I wait for alarms to go off, but Annie leads us through the gate and into the courtyards of a huge fortress. The walls are reinforced with metal plating. The only other thing is a large door, the rest is a solid mass of metal and stone.

Annie walks right up to the front door and pushes her thumb against a glass screen. "Richardson, Annie" a robotic voice speaks. The massive doors open and she walks across the threshold.

"That's it?" Scott asks, "We're just going through the front door?"

"It's the only way in," Annie replies.

"No side doors? Emergency exits?" Scott asks.

"Nope, that defeats the purpose of a fortress. Blast the camera." She points towards a glass circle inside the door and Scott blasts it.

The inside of Hydra HQ is a labyrinth of metal enforced hallways, low ceilings, and bright, LED lights. Annie leads us down a hallway to the left and I am surprised by the lack of security except for the cameras that Scott blasts.

"This way," Annie points up to a panel on the ceiling.

"We're going by way of air vent?" Angelica asks.

"Yes, unless you want to get caught." She reaches up and pushes the panel in, and then pulls herself up. Hank goes next, then Bobby, Angelica, and Warren, who has to pull his wings against his body to fit. I grab onto the edges of the opening and pull myself into the stuffy, metal-walled air vent. Scott goes last, and with that, Annie leads the way on hands and knees, through the ceilings of Hydra.

The control room will be very heavily secured," Annie's voice echoes through the vent, "You should probably be preparing for a battle."

"Yay! Are you going say we get to meet the Assassins too?" Bobby asks.

"Quite possibly," Annie says, not picking up on his sarcasm, or just ignoring it, "They have become Dr. Schmidt's bodyguards. Not that he needs them."

The vents turn and so do we. between the tight walls and the body heat, it starts to get almost unbearably warm. Within a few minutes, beads of sweat drip down my face and neck and my clammy hands stick to the metal below me.

"This should be it," Annie says, a light coming up from below in front of her. She removes the panel and giving us a thumbs up, slips down.

Everyone else slips down. Warren seemed to be squeezing his wings even closer to himself and Bobby encased himself in ice armor. Next, it was my turn. I allow my feet to go out first, then I drop my entire body. My stomach churns as the floor gets closer me, and out of habit, my hands go out to protect my body. I hit it hard, and feel something in my wrist snap and pain swims up my arm. I let out a small cry and Hank helps me to my feet.

"I still think your parents should have named you Grace," Annie says.

I roll my eyes as I rub my wrist. It is already swelling. Yep, definitely a sprain.

Scott jumps next, he, of course, lands on his feet.

I look around, the room is lit with a blue glow, monitors, screens, and other techy stuff lines the walls and is stacked on shelves. Each screen has the image of a red skull with tentacles coming off it, I'm assuming Hydra's symbol. The carpet is plush and on the wall closest to the door is a cappuccino machine. They may be evil, but at least Hydra cares that their employees have decent coffee and plush carpets.

Warren gets to work hacking into the computer. Lines of numbers fill the screen and he scans through the code. His fingers type swiftly on the keyboard as he adds more numbers to the screen. Finally, the code disappears and reveals pages full of small text. He clicks a button and more pages open, all of them are bio pages of teenagers.

"Here they are," he says. He takes a flash drive from his pocket and jams into the side of the screen.

"Get ready to…" he's cut short. The door opens and a dozen guards pour into the room.

"What do you think Y'all doin'?" The one in the front asks, her graying hair is tied back into a tight knot at the very back of her head and her cold, blue eyes scan us down, "Arrest them!" she demands.

"Now!" Scott yells. We didn't really have a plan, but at his command, we all focus our powers at the guards. I pick up computer screens with telekinesis and throw them at them. Warren shoots at them, Angelica sends fire towards them, catching their clothes and the carpet at their feet on fire. Bobby gives some hypothermia, Scott blasts them, and Hank picks up on the computer throwing and begins doing it himself.

Before the last one is down, he yells into his communicator, "Bring in the Assassins!" Then he collapses.

"Let's go!" Scott yells.

Warren grabs the flash drive and tosses it to Annie, who pockets it and makes her way to escape. No one gets to escape.

The Assassins get here too fast. The group stands a man almost beyond recognition, with scars crisscrossing his face and a robotic leg, is Simon Niles.

"For Red Skull!" He yells. Then there is only chaos.

Knives start to soar through the air, optic blasts hit the opponent team. One Assassin, in particular, a black-haired girl who's muscles bulged out from her clothes, seemed to have a lot of hatred towards me. She fires a ray gun at me, I form telekinetic energy around me to act as a force field. I throw a piece of computer debris at her, hitting her square in the shoulder. Her nostrils flare and she aims yet another shot at me. I jump out of the way, bumping into Scott as I do so.

"You okay?" He asks while he blasts at the Assassins, his hand never leaving his visor.

"I'm fine. You?" I send a sheet of metal towards the girl. She dodges it and it hits the wall.

"Doing great," Scott gets grazed in the forearm with a knife, blood bubbles up from the cut in his uniform. He swears under his breath and blasts at them again, this time with more force.

My lungs burn and my heart beats in my chest, but I continue sending pieces of what used to be computers towards the enemy.

Warren and Annie start to shoot back at the Assassins. Gunshots echo off the walls and a bullet hits one of them in the chest. He falls back into the cappuccino machine, blood spreading over his breast pocket.

I dodge another knife, and stumble, falling into a desk. I stand up and throw another piece of debris, this time wood for the desk I just hit, at them. They scatter.

Then the room gets really cold, "Bobby, warm up a little It's freezing!" Hank commands. The response is shards of ice showering us.

"Bobby!" I yell. I find him among the faces of the Assassins, his eyes are open, but unfocused and when Simon whispers something into his ear, he blasts us with ice sans any hesitation.

Then like in slow motion, Bobby throws a knife directly at Warren, who still has the flash drive in his hand. Warren flies up, and the knife lands in his lift wing. He moans and falls to the ground. Blood stains the white feathers as he pulls the blade out.

Then the Assassins walk out of the room and Bobby fills the doorway with a thick sheet of ice, blocking us in. Scott grabs my arm, "Come on, we're leaving," He says.

"But Bobby…" I protest, "We can't just leave him!"

"Bobby will be fine. We have too many injuries to follow them, you included," He nods towards my wrist, which is still throbbing, and the many cuts and abrasions on my face and neck.

I look around, Angelica is knocked unconscious, Hank had blood dripping down from his hairline and Warren is struggling to get to his feet, with the help of Annie, who had a huge gash going across her face. Apparently, Scott was right, this mission was practically suicide.

The trip back to the blackbird was relatively easy. Scott blasted through the sheet of ice and Annie leads the way through the brightly lit halls and out the front door. We might have lost Bobby and got pretty beat up, but our mission was successful in the means that we got the flash drive of information that we were after.

When we get past the fence and into the forest where the plane is residing, Scott breaks the silence, "We'll be back for Bobby," He says, "we are not just leaving him here, and if the Assassins took him, then chances are we'll just have to take him back." The ramp of the plane comes down and we board. Hank drops unconscious Angelica in her seat and buckles her in. Her head bobs as he pulls the straps over her.

Scott takes his spot in the pilot's seat and with a few adjustments to switches and knobs, he pulls up on the joysticks and we're airborne.

No one says anything until we're flying over New York. Warren gets up from his seat and begins to pace around between the seats. Both of his wings are tucked in against his back, but his injured one is lying at a weird angle and dried blood coats it. "Since when does Drake know how to throw a knife?" He asks bitterly. Warren and Bobby had always been really close, like brothers, so hearing him speak with such a resentful tone sort of surprises me, even if he was just impaled in the wing by him. "He was hardly able to aim a basketball."

"He was under the control of Simon," Annie explains, "He probably gave him the skills telepathically." She shifts in her seat slightly and dabs the oozing gash across her face with a tissue.

"Either way," Hank says, "We'll have to go up against The Assassins again if we want our dear friend back."

"We will be ready for them this time," Scott says. And there was a mumble of agreement.

"What happened?" Moira asks us as we step from the plane. She had been away for two days and had no clue of what was going on back here until she got back.

"We dug our own graves," Warren says.

"The Assassins got Bobby," Scott divulges.

Hank comes out, carrying Angelica in his muscular arms. Moira gasps and rushes over to him. She then commands that we all come to the infirmary.

We, Scott, Hank, Annie and I, sit in the plush chairs outside of the infirmary. Angelica was already in bed with a heart monitor and IV hooked to her. Warren was sitting on the table while Moira stitched up his wing.

Scott puts his arm around me and all of the sudden I feel more relaxed. I lay my aching head on his shoulder just as the Professor comes in. His eyes are bloodshot and his usually pressed suit is wrinkled, but when he sees us he smiles, "So they got Bobby?" He asks.

"There was nothing we could have done, Sir, I'm sorry," Scott says.

"It wasn't your fault, Scott, if anything it was mine," The Professor rolls over to the glass, door and shakes his head, "I should have trained you for something like this. I was so concerned about teaching you to defend yourselves against humans and their weapons, that I overlooked defending against fellow mutants. Especially ones with power as great as Mr. Niles."

Warren comes out and Moira follows, "Jean, your next," she says.

I situate myself onto the table as Moira bustles around the infirmary, throwing away bloody squares of gauze and slipping rubber gloves over her hands. "Let;s see that wrist," She says. I hold it out and she touches it slightly, making me flinch.

After an MRI, Moira determines that it is a sprained wrist. She wraps it and treats some of my other cuts, then sends me on my way.

I fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow. I wake up an hour later to the sunrise shining through the window. I get up and wander out of my room and down the stairs to the kitchen.

"It isn't safe!" Moira yells.

I stop in my tracks.

"They are my students, Moira, and I will determine what they can and cannot do." The Professor responds, not in a yell, but sternly.

"Just because some of them don't have parents it doesn't mean all of them don't. What happens if Jean or Warren are killed? How do you tell their parents? They're just kids, Charles, They should be running around playing sports and doing homework, but you're treating them like soldiers."

"Moira, They are not just kids, they're special, the world just hasn't seen it yet."

"When you accept that mutants will never be accepted you know where to find me." The kitchen door opens and Moira storms out. Paying no attention to me as she rushes away.

I never see Moria after that.

to be continued

 **Author notes: Okay, this has kind of turned into a full story instead of an origin story...oops. anyways, I hope you all like it even it it's not a origin story. Comments and critism are welcome!**


	11. Chapter 10

If this is what it a hangover feels Like, I never want to be drunk.

My head throbs as I make my way down to the kitchen. My entire body aches like hell and whenever I move my arm the tiniest bit, pain shoots up from my wrist.

Annie is coming out from her room as I pass it. Her hair is tied at the base of her head and she wears a light pink tank top and a pair of shorts, displaying the computer chips in her arms and on her chest and neck, and her shiny, metal leg. "Good afternoon," She says, followed with a yawn.

"Uh-huh."

"That's basically all you've said to me, Jean, come on, we use to be best buddies, and now we're not. I wish you would tell me why!"

"Did you really just use _Frozen_ to try to get me to talk to you?"

She nods, "Yes I did. Did it work?"

"I'll tell you why I'm not talking to you. For five years I thought you were dead, and now you just randomly appear and tell us you're a mutant and been working for Hydra for the time I've been grieving your death! Can you blame me for not talking to you?" tears burn my eyes and I blink them back.

"Calm down Jean. I didn't want to lie to you. I didn't want to leave you. My parents made me. They were scared. Hell, I was the last thing I wanted to do was lie to you." She puts her hand on my shoulder and I shrug it off.

"Then why did you? You could have told me about your powers, Annie."

"Would you have believed me?"

"I've seen a whole lot of stuff that a normal person wouldn't believe. I mean, my boyfriend shoots lasers from his eyes! I'd believe anything."

"But you saw it all after I left. If I showed my power to ten year old, Jean Grey, who didn't even believe in Sasquatch, would she have believed me?"

I look down at my feet, "No," I admit.

"Exactly."

I turn on my heels and storm off before the tears can come.

* * *

Sun rays leak in through the large bay window of the lounge as I curl my feet into the couch cushion. Scott sits opposite of me, nursing a mug of coffee in his hands and staring at a spot on the carpet.

I lift my own mug off the coffee table and guiding it towards my mouth with my fingertips of my left hand, I take a sip of the rich beverage. I set it back down and some splashes out onto the mahogany surface.

"Need help?" Scott asks.

"I am totally capable of hydrating myself," I say.

He grins at me, "fair enough," and continues to stare at the floor.

"What are you thinking about?" I ask him.

"Don't you know?" he raises his eyebrows above his glasses.

"Just because I'm telepathic doesn't mean I constantly read everyone's thoughts. What's up?"

"I'm just thinking about last night," he pauses and takes a long drink of coffee. Wiping his mouth on the back of his hand and continuing, "what could we have done differently? I mean, what would have made it different than what happened?"

I'm assuming he is talking about Bobby. What could we have done that would have kept him from being captured by the Assassins?

"I don't know, but we'll get him back," I say, "He's not gone forever." I watch the melted whipped cream swirl around in my mug.

Warren comes in and plops down onto the couch beside me. His wing is bandaged up, but it lays flat against his back now, not at the angle it was last night.

"That Simon dude is a real pain in the ass," He says, "and You know him?" he looks at me.

"Trust me, I wish I didn't know him," I say, "He was the school bully and rapist since fifth grade."

"Rapist?" Warren questions.

"Ninth grader," I explain, "Under the bleachers."

"Damn kid, keep it in your pants," Warren pops a potato chip into his mouth.

"So, he has a criminal record, good to know," Scott says.

"Actually he doesn't. He plays the victim anytime he did something. Plus his dad was the Police Chief, so he was able to wiggle out of basically anything."

Scott puts his mug on the table and starts to walk around, "We have to beat him. There is no way he can wiggle his way out of this one."

Hank rushes into the room, his hair ruffled and his button-down shirt wrinkled, "The Professor needs us down in the War room. Immediately."

* * *

The War room is a round room with a round table in the middle surrounded by comfy, plush, chairs. Computers line the walls and the air is filled with beeping and the scent of burnt wire.

"We obviously can't face the Assassins alone," The Professor says. He had pulled Scott out to speak to him before we were all seated. He looks pretty shaken as he sits next to me.

"Obviously, but what else are we going to do?" Warren asks.

" there are a few other mutants that we can recruit."

"Like who?" Angelica asks.

"Well, one living in Manhattan named, Alison Blaire, " The Professor clicks something on a monitor and a picture of a girl with brown hair comes up. She looks very familiar, but I can't place her until,

"That's that girl who was called out for being a mutant at that club last year, remember Jean? What was her name? Dazzler!" Warren declares.

"Oh yeah," I say.

The Professor nods and types something else on the computer, "Alexander Masters, currently in the Federal Correctional Institution of Herlong, California." a mugshot of a long, blond-haired kid with blue eyes appears onto the screen.

"Hey, he looks kind of like you, Scott. Do you have a brother or something we don't know about?" Warren asks.

Scott shifts uncomfortably next to me. It looks like his eyes were glued to the screen.

"Hey, Scott, you okay?" Angelica asks, putting her hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah, why?" Scott says, harshly.

 _Who is it?_ I ask.

 _My brother._

 _So Warren was right for once. I didn't know you had a brother._

 _Neither did I_. He looks up at me. _Not anymore at least._

The Professor Continues, "you will recruit Alison first, bring her here, then go get Alexander. Be ready to leave in twenty."

Scott is the first one up. I follow him out, grabbing for his hand in the hall.

"So, brother, huh?" I ask.

"It's nothing, Jean," he squeezes my hand tighter then I think he means to.

We get the elevator, "Grey, Jean," I say into the speaker "Come on, what's up?" The doors slide open and we step in.

"We were in a plane crash when I was eight. He was five. Until today I was under the impression that I was the only one who survived, I guess I wasn't."

"Oh, I'm sorry," I saw automatically. 'Well, I'm not sorry he's alive… I mean…"

"I know," The elevator door opens and we step out into the dormitory hall.

I think about all the times he's stayed here for Christmas. He never said anything about family, or even a home life, period. I just always assumed his family disowned him like Angelica's did. I never thought that he didn't have a family.

When I get to my room, the first thing I do is unwrap my wrist. It still hurt, but I knew if I had my hand wrapped, It would prevent me from fulfilling whatever I would have to do. I change from my comfy clothes to a pair of high-rise shorts and a green t-shirt with high tops, my 'blending in' I pack my black, leather uniform in my backpack and shoulder it. I was ready for whatever fate had in store for us.

* * *

The mood in the car was tense, for a lack of better term. Hank sat in the front seat with Angelica, who was the only one of us who had her license. Scott sits beside me, and Warren and Annie sit in the back.

Scott's hand was interlaced tightly to mine, sweat collecting in our palms. Hank has his nose in a book, and the entire car is quiet except for the engine, and Warren mumbling the lyrics to 'The Hanging Tree' from the Mockingjay.

"Oblivion needs more than just the assassins to release him," Annie says, "That's probably is why they took Robert."

" _-are you, are you, coming to the tree. Where they strung up a man, they said who murdered three._ " Warren sings.

"Warren, shut up," Scott says. "Why didn't you tell us that before? That is kind of important information" He turns in his seat to face Annie.

She shrugs, "I didn't want to be the bearer of bad news."

"Hate to break it to you hon," Angelica says as we pull onto the freeway, "But you've sort of been the bearer of bad news from the get-go."

Annie's cheeks are tinted with pink, "Sorry, I'm new to this whole 'hero' thing. I'm used to keeping information to myself. Seriously I couldn't tell anyone when I started my period. I just had to go on with my day and pray to the puberty gods above that I didn't leak through my pants."

I sigh.

"Has anyone ever told you that you're awkward?" Warren asks.

Angelica turns the wheel and we pull into a small, gravel parking lot of an apartment complex. The windows cladded with multicolored curtains, and the front of the building is decorated with well-manicured shrubbery. We all get out of the car and up the cracked sidewalk.

Since he is the leader, Scott was supposed to do the talking. So when we get into the lobby, we wait in the small sitting area and he goes into the elevator.

"Testing… Testing," Scott's voice comes over the walkie-talkie.

"We can hear you," Hank says.

"Okay. What apartment number is it again?" He asks.

"201," Angelica says, reading off the notes she took on her phone.

"Okay, thanks." We sit in silence and stare at the radio as we wait for him to say something else.

"I'm in the hallway, Just rang the doorbell and…oh…" His voice falters.

"Scott, what's wrong?" I ask, panic filling my stomach.

"Nothing," is his response.

"Did you see Dazzler?" Angelica suggests, smirking as she does so.

"Yes," Scott replies, sheepishly.

My cheeks glow hot. I wasn't sure if it was because of my panicked tone a minute before, or the fact that my boyfriend got starstruck by a YouTube popstar.

More time passes as we wait. He had to convince her to join us in a very short amount of time. It wasn't going to be very easy and Scott didn't have the reputation of being patient.

The only thing coming over the walkie talkie was a muffled static noise, which probably meant that he had pocketed his. But I can't shake the anxious feeling that was building in my gut.

Then it all happens at once, all of the doors in the lobby; the elevator, the front door, the emergency exit, supply closet, open and the Assassins appears, all dressed in army green and black. Bobby among them.

They had to know where we were coming, but how?

Simultaneously we all stand up. Darts start to fly, hitting Angelica and Hank, causing them to collapse. I form a shield with telekinetic energy to block anymore from hitting the team. We were already short three people, four counting Scott, who is still upstairs, plus we're out number, four to one at least.

Annie removes a gun hidden under her t-shirt and starts shooting, causing a chandelier to come crash to the ground. Glass scatters the room.

"Where the hell did that chandelier come from anyway?" Warren asks, looking up at the ceiling.

My body begins to tremble. I've never made a force field so big before, and it was draining me, fast. I hear Scott's voice in my head, _Jean, what's going on? We heard gunshots!_

 _The Assassins!_ I practically scream. _Scott help, we've already lost Angelica and Hank…_ The force field fails. I feel a prick in my shoulder, and I go down.

* * *

 **Scott's POV**

 _Damn._ I rush to the door, Alison trailing behind me. "What's wrong?" She asks, her eyes wide with fear.

"The Assassins found us," I say.

"They're here?" She asks, grabbing my arm with her shaking hands.

"Yes. what's the quickest way down to the lobby?" I ask.

"Elevator. but if they're down _there_ , don't you want to stay up _here_ where it's safe?" her grip on me gets tighter.

"No. My friends are down there," I say, "I have to get down there too." I shove the door open and rush down the carpeted hall towards the elevator. Jean? No answer. The pain I felt was like I was being hurt myself. Whatever affected Jean, went through the Psychic link.

Terrified residents are filling the hall. Alarms are going off below, and the sprinkler system kicks in up here, showering everyone with water.

I finally get to the elevator and push the down arrow several more times then I need to. An old man with thinning hair and a scar going down his cheek grabs me by the shoulder, making me jump. "What the hell are you thinking, Kid? The terrorists are down there. Stay up here where it's safe."

The elevator door opens and two assassins step out. One I recognize as that Simon guy, with his crisscrossed scars and cold eyes, the second was a girl about my age, with thick, black hair in a braid and just as cold eyes.

The Man's grip on my falters and he falls back into the crowd.

I reach up to my glasses and remove them, the blasts shoot towards the Assassins and anything else in their range. It doesn't hurt, but it makes my body tense up. I slip the glasses back on and both Assassins are on the floor of the elevator.

Someone in the crowd yells, "They're all terrorists!" then Simon grabs my leg and I fall.

He yanks me in the elevator as the doors close, and the shaft begins to go down. I blast at them again, but I'm pushed back into the wall. I recognize the feeling from whenever Jean and I have to go head to head in the Danger room, and sure enough, the girl Assassin has her fingertips at her temples.

Simon grabs my shoulder, "The pain will only be unbearable for a moment," His lengthy fingers touch my forehead and pain swarms through my body. Then my mind starts to get hazy. Fight it I tell myself. And I do. I kick Simon in the gut and he stumbles backward. He swears and gains his footing.

"Nice try, Summers," he says. His voice is like nails on a chalkboard. He punches me in the jaw. Pain. I shake it off and aim a kick at his legs.

He dodges me and takes out a knife from his belt.

I blast at his hand, causing the blade to clatter to the ground.

The elevator opens and the girl falls out. I blast at Simon again, this time, hitting him square in the gut. He topples over, tripping over the girl as he does so.

I step over them and to the small group of X-Men still remaining, Annie, and Warren. Hank and Angelica are on the floor, and Jean is nowhere. Annie shoots at Simon, hitting him in the shoulder.

"Where's Jean?" I ask.

Warren looks around the half-destroyed lobby, "I dunno."

Great, just what the team needed, to lose another member to the Assassins. Especially one with the power of Jean.

* * *

 **Jean's POV**

I wake up in the dark.

I stand up and my shoulder aches from where I was hit by the dart. Then I hear his voice, and my entire body tenses up like someone poured ice down my back, "Oh yes, the precious little X-Men."

 _This is it,_ I think, _My nightmare is coming true._

 **Author's Notes: So, what do you all think of me sneaking in Scott's POV in there? The chapter just didn't seem right without it. so, please let me know what you thought of it. Comment! Comment! Comment! I always love reading anything you all have to say. Xoxo!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Jean's POV**

I couldn't feel my powers, making me feel empty and weak. No matter what I tried, I couldn't tap into my telepathy.

The hair on the back of my neck stands up at the sound of Simon's voice. It was pitchy, and just down right scary.

"Where did you take me?" I ask, trying to stall him. If this was like my dream from a few nights ago, then I don't like where this is going to go.

"There is an empty warehouse on the outskirts of Budapest." He replies. His hot breath tickles my ear as he speaks, and his cold hand clamps around my upper arm, "That is in Europe if you didn't know."

My heartbeat rises to my throat. Europe? I always wanted to go to Europe, just not in this way; completely helpless and at the mercy of my host.

"It's a shame, Jean, that you won't be able to witness the beauty of the town." Simon's cold fingers find their way to my temples, and pain shoots through my body. My knees buckle and I collapse. My sweaty hands collect grit from the floor and tears swim into my vision. In my dream, Scott called for me around this time. Where was he? Then I feel nothing.

I wake up sweaty and achy. I'm in a soft bed, with light streaming in from a window beside me. I sit up, the door had an electric lock on it, but other than that, the room looks like a place where a teenage girl would live, with a closet full of clothes and a desk full of makeup. The walls are painted a soft pink and the shag carpet under my bare feet is beige. I look down, I'm wearing a flowy, white nightgown and my hair is pulled back into a braid.

I don't remember getting here, wherever here is. I don't remember anything after blacking out.

The door opens and Simon steps in. He is in a blue, button-down shirt and a pair of khakis. "Good morning, Jean," He says, his voice honeyed. "Do you want breakfast? I want to talk to you more about the X-Men."

I stare blankly at him. Why the hell would he think I'd tell him about the X-Men? What did he mean by _more? What did I do before I woke up in here?_

"Did you hear me, Jean? Do you want breakfast? There are pancakes?" He comes over to me and shakes his hand in front of my face.

"Yes. I heard," I say.

He mumbles something about mind controlled are slow and then I understand what's happening. He thinks I'm under mind control.

"Get changed, we'll go get pancakes," he nods towards the closet of clothes and I go towards it, expecting him to leave. He doesn't. I know I'm supposed to be insensate, but I really didn't feel comfortable getting dressed in front of him.

"Oh, I'm losing you." He says in a monotone. He comes towards me and I act, kicking him in the gut. He swears under his breath and grabs my ankle, pulling m down with him. Then his hands grab my temples and I lose consciousness again.

When I wake up this time, I'm sitting at a table in a noisy cafeteria with a half-eaten tray of pancakes on the table in front of me and Simon beside me. I'm in a pair of jeans and a loose (and very sheer) shirt.

"Now, tell me more about Scott Summers." He says. _damn, what had I told him already?_ We are going to get beat because I'm probably telling him everyone's weaknesses.

"He's under confident of himself," I say _. Why the hell did I say that?_ I'm going to be kicked off the team for this. "He says he nothing, but the rest of them know different." I hate myself for this. _Why can't I stop?_

"And he likes you, doesn't he? Trusts you with his life, his secrets more than anyone else on the team?" Simon asks.

"Yes."

"And what has he told you?"

I hesitate, okay, maybe I'm gaining control. Then my mind goes fuzzy and I say, "He has a brother."

"Summer's has a brother. Is he a mutant?"

"Yes. but I don't know what his powers are."

 **Scott's POV**

"So, any ideas what this guy's powers are?" Warren asks as we land at the California airport.

"The Professor said Energy blasts," Angelica says. I nod.

I'm the first one down the ramp. I shove my hands into my jean pockets to keep them from shaking.

"Hey, Cyke? You okay? You've been acting weird since we got back to the school," Warren claps me on the shoulder and I shrug it off. No one except for Jean and the Professor knew we were breaking my brother out of Prison, and I wanted to keep it that way.

"I'm just worried about Jean," It wasn't a lie, I was worried about her. However, I was more worried about meeting a brother I hadn't seen in over eight years. Who, apparently, is a criminal, or has been framed as a criminal. I'm hoping for the later.

"Hank and Annie are probably doing all they can to find her," Angelica says.

The Professor made arrangements for us to get a car. When we get to the gate, a man in a black suit is waiting. "Xavier?" He asks in a thick, French accent. We nod and he leads us to a black car parked in the lot.

"Damn, this is fancy," Angelica says as she climbs in behind me. The inside of the car was carpet lined with a mini fridge and a stack of magazines. "Please, make yourself at home," the driver says.

Warren takes that to mean raiding the mini-fridge and taking out a bottle of beer.

"What the hell, Warren!?" I say.

He shrugs and takes a swig of the beer. He coughs and slides the open bottle back into the fridge, "Why do people like that? I'm going to stick with Capris suns."

"You are going to za prison?" The driver asks.

"Yes," Angelica replies.

The inside of the car is dead silent giving me a lot of time to think. Which isn't good. Worst case scenario, Alex recognizes me. It's not that I'm not overjoyed that he's alive, I just don't want the team to know about my past. I don't want them to know about Jake Winters.

The car stops in front of an iron gate. Warren tips the driver and we get out. "I will be back in twenty minutes. Will that be long enough?" the driver asks.

We tell him it will and he drives off, dust flies off the road in a big puff as he turns onto the main road.

A feminine voice comes over the intercom, "please come through security to the front desk." The gate opens and we step through. We don't even get to security before an alarm goes off.

The front doors bursts open and bullets start to fly.

 **Jean's POV**

When I gain control again, I'm sitting in a jet, wearing the clothing that the rest of the Assassins wear, thick, army green pants, a gray T-shirt, and heavy, leather boots.

"Explain again what we're doing?" a girl in front of me asks. She has her long hair in a braid going down her back like I do. It must be Assassin protocol or something.

"Jean so willing to me that Summers has a brother and that he is in prison. With some added research, we found out that he has similar powers to his brother. Except he has the energy blasts in his fingertips, not eyes. We are going to recruit him before the X-Men and use him against Scott Summers," Simon says. He walks through the rows of seats and kneels beside me, "Isn't that right?" Memories flood back to me of him in bed with me. Horrified, I nod.

"Excellent. We're almost there. Get ready for departure," He yells through the plane.

I black out again.

I'm running through a tight corridor surrounded by the Assassins. There's a lot of stepping on the heels of my boots or bumping into me as we file from the Prison. I recognize Alex in the front with Simon. Somewhere I sense Scott.

 _Alex?_

He turns around and looks at me, wide-eyed. _Did you?_

 _Yes. listen, your brother is somewhere. Somewhere close. Don't join the Assassins._

 _But you're part of the Assassins._

 _Not by choice._ I try not to sound too exasperated. This kid is like thirteen and I don't want to be the one who scares him off.

What do you mean?

 _If I was here by choice would I be telling you not to listen to them?_

 _Touche' So how are we getting out?_

The doors appear in front of us and they burst open. And sure enough, Warren, Scott, and Angelica are standing right there.

to be continued

 **Author's notes: Sorry for such the delay. It's been a pretty busy week for me. Hopefully you all enjoyed the chapter and are looking forward to the next. See you all later this week (hopefully thursdays or friday) Cheers!**


	13. Chapter 12

"The Pathetic X-Men!" Simon scoffs.

The Assassins begin shooting at the X-Men, some use actual guns, others, their powers. Beams scorch. Bullets ricochet. Three against seventeen. Where were Hank and Annie?

The air gets frigid and I turn to see Bobby shooting ice towards Warren… which would have been the ultimate betrayal if Bobby wasn't under mind control. I focus my telekinesis on him, sending him toppling back into another Assassin, who swears and shoots at Angelica. The Assassin gets burnt to a crisp.

I jump out of the way as flames began to spread across the grass, licking my boots. I trip backward into a soft body, and Alex gasps in my ear as we both fall.

"Sorry," I mumble, rolling off of him. This is seriously the worst time to be clumsy.

I regain my footing, standing pretty close to the front line. Only one assassin keeps me separated from the X-Men. I just turn around to see a red optic blast barrel towards my direction. The Assassin dodges it, and before I have time to move, I'm being shot in the chest. The impact of blast pushes me backward and pain swarms my chest.

Scott. I call out to him weakly as a crumble onto my knees.

"Dear God," I sense him coming towards me. Then he's kneeling beside me, "Please tell me you're okay."

The pain had mostly stopped, leaving only a steady throb where the initial blast hit me.

He eases my head up with his fingertips, "Jean, I am so sorry. I didn't see you there, I thought I was hitting one of the Assassins. Oh god, I'm so sorry."

"I'm okay," I say, my voice cracks and tears burn my eyes, but I don't know why.

Scott seems frightened as his fingers rub down my jaw. He'd seen me cry a handful of other times, but he never caused it. Now that I'm seemingly crying because he shot me, he's uncomfortable and furious with himself. But I wasn't crying because I'm hurt. To be honest I'm not even really crying, let alone know why.

"I'm sure," I sit up straighter and wrap my arms around his shoulders, "I love you," I whisper. Okay, I do love him, but as to why I admitted to it in the middle of a battle after he just blasted me, I have no idea. Maybe it was because I feared that one of us would never get to hear it being said aloud.

I feel Scott's breath against my ear as he says, "I love you too, Red."

Then the battle surrounding us vanishes. The heat from Angelica's fire wasn't what made me hot, it was Scott's lips against mine. The ice from Bobby wasn't what sent chills down my spine, it was Scott's hands against my back, pulling me closer to him. Closer still, until;

"Woohoo! Love birds! A little help?" Warren yells from five feet up as he reloads his gun.

Scott helps me to my feet and the battle starts again.

The ground under me turns to ice and I jump up, using telekinesis to stay afloat.

Someone shoots at me. I send the bullets back towards the one responsible. For a second, her eyes were in the same monotone position as Bobby's. Then they grow wide and she screams as the bullets entered her body. I turn quickly so I don't have to watch her slumping to the ground.

I feel my body stagger back. _What the hell?_ I regain control and look around the ground.

A guy is standing in the front of the enemy line. His fingertips up to his temples and his cold stare set upon me. _Another telepath?_

I send him backward and he smirks, _is that all you know how to do, Miss Grey?_

 _Not even close._

I pick up a piece of rubble and throw it at him. He, of course, blocks it.

Then I feel him in my mind, digging around. _How can someone as beautiful as yourself have such limited powers? Maybe it's because Xavier is holding you back._

 _Shut the hell up_. I stare up at the front wall of the prison and it starts to crumble; showering everyone under it with cement and metal. A large piece of metal hits the telepath hard in the shoulder.

 _Excellent, a real fight. I guess I just had to get the bitch pissed enough to act._

 _You want to see me pissed? Fine._

And somehow I psychically move in just the right way that I screw his cerebral cortex. He involuntary falls to his knees.

 _I will not be defeated._ his head hits the ground and he loses consciousness.

I'm blocked from his mind.

I fall back to the ground. My knees buckle under me and I collapse. Both my physical and mental powers felt drained and I pray that the battle would be finished soon. However, gunshots still steadily echo through the chill air.

Warren is shooting at Simon, "Give me back my friend!" He bellows.

Then I understand his tactic, if the puppet master is downed, then the puppets can't be controlled. Simon just laughs as he dodges the bullets. Until his body goes tense before falling to the ground. Warren had shot him, right above the heart. The enemy is dying. He isn't the only one though.

A gunshot is followed by a moan. I turn around to see Alex on the ground, doubled over and clutching his bloody stomach. A black haired girl runs away from him. Giggling right before Warren shoots her in the head.

Scott kneels beside his brother. I can't make out what he's saying, but I can make out what's going on. Alex slumps back. His lifeless eyes rolling back. He was dead. I sense Scott's misery, but there isn't anything I could possibly do to comfort him, To take him out of his grief. People who haven't lost anyone close think that saying 'I'm sorry' and sending flowers are what heals the wounds left by death, but anyone who has lost someone close knows it doesn't. It's a mental barrier that keeps you from healing. It's a small voice in your head reminding you of all the times you wronged the person. It's a constant battle. And it's not fair.

The grass begins to blow and the sound of a plane engine rings in my ears. The Blackbird lands only ten feet away from us. Warren comes over, supporting Bobby. "What's up with Cyke?" He asks.

"Alex was his brother," I say, completely forgetting that he didn't want anyone to know.

"Oh."

The ramp lowers and Hank rushes out. "There you are!" he says to me, embracing me. "Come on We have to leave. There was a lead on a huge cosmic force in Australia. Professor X says it's Oblivion."

"Okay." I say, "You four go ahead, I'll get Scott."

I go across the destroyed landscape. Half of the prison is rubble, which may be partly my fault. Inside guards and inmates alike huddle under tables and in dilapidated cells.

"Scott," I say gently as I get to him, "We need to leave now."

He doesn't say anything.

"Scott?" I kneel down beside him. He covers his face with his hands. His shoulders shake.

"Are you okay?" I asked, hugging him. Obviously he wasn't, but hopefully, this will start a conversation.

"It's all my fault," He mumbles.

"Scott, look at me," I say, prying his hands away from his tearstained face, "none of this is your fault, okay? None of it."

"I should have been looking for him. I took the hospital's word for it when they said I was the only one who survived the plane crash. I should have been looking."

"You were just a kid, Scott, you did what you needed to. He's not going to hold that against you. "

A huge crash echoes through the air. Then the sky lights up in purples and greens like the Aurora Borealis. The only problem was that it was the middle of the day, and California doesn't have the Aurora Borealis.

"We need to leave, Now!" Hank yells from the plane's ramp.

"That's our cue," I say, "Come on Scott, we gotta leave, now!" I pull him to his feet just as huge chunks of ice start to fall from the sky.

I form a force field around us and he finally seems to get a grasp of things. As a huge ball of ice bounces off the psychic bubble, he swears, "what the hell are these?" He asks.

"Oblivion," I say.

We get into the jet and the ramp closes. The ice beats against the ceiling so that it sounds like more gunshots.

"Scott, I…" Hank begins.

"Where are we standing right now with the mission?" Scott cuts him off, "What are we up against?" He sits down in the pilot seat and adjusts controls.

He is keeping himself busy. Burying himself in work so that he doesn't think about it. I can still sense his misery though.

The plane rises against the ice. It's extremely bumpy, worse than when Warren tried to fly through turbulence.

Meanwhile, Bobby is starting to come around. Warren who had just set him on the floor, helps him into a seat, "Did I blackout or something? What's that noise? Where's Annie?"

Warren actually laughs, "You were taken captive by a bunch of space pirates who forced you to eat a bunch of asparagus and sing the opening song from Lion King. We just rescued you and are now going to fight the Oblivion guy. The noise is as hail storm as we enter the earth's atmosphere."

"But Where's Annie?" Bobby asks, his boyish face full of concern as he scans the plane. I hadn't even noticed her absence.

The plane shakes again, throwing Warren into the wall.

Hank turns around, "She's back at the mansion helping the Professor. Why do you ask?"

Bobby blushes, "No reason. I'm just concerned for my fellow teammates. Is that so wrong?"

"Do you have a crush on Robo-girl?" Angelica asks in a mock disbelief.

"I do not have a crush on her!" Bobby says, blushing even more.

"Your face and hormone level prove differently, Bobby," Warren says, strapping himself into his own seat after finally standing back up

"How do you know my hormone level?"

"Really? I don't think it takes a genius to notice that your gen…"

"I swear if you finish the sentence with the girls in here will put you in such a thick sheet of ice you'll be like Hans Solo stuck in carbonite."

The plane drops several feet and my stomach falls to my feet.

Everything seems to be under Scott's and Hank's control... until a massive bolt of lightning hits us.

 **Author notes: What did you all think? Sorry for such the late update. When I went on Summer break I thought I would have more time to write... But apparrently I was wrong. Hopefully I will be updating again in the next week, but with my everchanging schedule I don't know.**

 **Also, I thought it was important to kill Alex (**Spoiler** I have a policy that I don't kill off anyone who isn't my own creation, so...) I also think that having Warren kill off Simon was a last minute discission, but I think it ended up working. Let me know what you think! Cheers!**


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

The lights in the plane flicker a few times before going off completely. Bobby swears, Angelica squeals, and I feel like I may vomit.

"We're going down!" Hank yells.

" _I'm Yelling Timber!_ Sorry but if this wasn't such a serious situation this would be a very good time for a musical number," Warren yells over the sound of failing engines. Leave it to him to still be able to make a joke in a situation like this.

Scott frantically switches on and off different switches trying to get the plane back online.

Then there is a rattling noise and we stop falling.

"Did you fix it?" Bobby asks.

"I don't think SOOOO!" the plane speeds up, flying at 800 mph according to the controls. I may not be an expert on planes, but this is way too fast. I'm being pushed back in my seat with such force that it feels like I have a pile of bricks on top of me, keeping me down. My eyes are watery and my face stings. Wind whips in my ears and the ice still clatters against the outside. All in all, this isn't a great situation.

Scott swears steadily as he tries to get the plane on track again. "According to this, the plane shouldn't be moving!" he yells, "According to this we are completely still."

"This is not still!" Angelica calls back.

"You think I don't know that?" Scott replies angrily

"Is that a girl?"Hank asks.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Warren demands.

Hank points, and sure enough, there is a girl in front of the plane, her arms are spread out and every time she moves, the plane moves with her. She floats along in the wind like a kite. Almost Like she's riding along with the wind instead of being blown, almost like she's _controlling_ the wind.

"What is a girl doing out there?" Bobby asks, squirming in his seat to see.

"I don't know, Bobby, why don't you ask her?" Warren suggests sarcastically.

"She's controlling the wind," I say.

"That's impossible!" Bobby comments.

"Really, Snow Miser, that's impossible?" Angelica says.

"I think Jean's right. She is controlling the wind. Can you try to telepathically contact her?" Hank asks.

"I can try." everyone silently waits as I focus my telepathy on the girl. I find out her name is Ororo Munroe, but other than that I get nothing.

 _Umm hi._ I say because I can't think of anything else.

 _What?_ I sense her panicking as she looks around her. The plane jolts.

 _Yeah, I'm a telepath. A mutant, but I'm sure you know all about mutants._

 _Who are you?_

 _My name is Jean Grey. I'm on the plane that you are uh, hijacking._

 _Oh. my master told me to not let anyone get past. That I have to take all planes to the loading docks._

 _And you master is who?_

 _His name is Simon. Simon Niles, I think._

 _He's dead. One of my teammates killed him in a fight. Can I ask why he's your master?_

She hesitates _, he's dead?_

 _Yes. So If you could you know, put us down or something, that would be great._

 _But Oblivion has been released! No one but can control him but Simon!_

 _If you put us down we can help._

 _Yes, okay, give me a moment._

I pull away from her mind, "She was following Simon," I say, "But I think she's going to put us down." The plane starts to slow down and fall.

"6,000 feet!" Scott yells, "We're going down fast!"

Then we come to a halting stop and then slowly float down to the ground.

"Damn, I think I peed a little," Warren says.

We all take a moment to breathe before getting up and exiting the plane.

Ororo is waiting for us outside the plane. Now that she isn't just a silhouette in the storm, I can see her features. Dark skin, brown eyes, a tight-lipped smile, and bushy white hair, possibly a genetic mutation like my own vibrant red. She wears a sheer turquoise dress that flows over her body like silk and bare feet.

As soon as he lies eyes on her, Scott reaches up to his visor. I quickly grab his arm and ease it down. "Don't," I snap under my breath.

"But she…" Scott responds.

"We can trust her. Trust me on this," I tap my temple with my fingertips.

"Fine," He says harshly, then he turns to Ororo, "Who are you?" He asks.

"'Ro," She replies with a slight accent.

"Do you want to tell us what you were doing with our jet?"

"I-I was told too… By Simon," Ororo looks down at her feet.

"Simon is dead," Scott scoffs.

"Scott, lay off her," I say.

She looks gratefully up at me. "Did I damage the jet in any way?"

"No, not that I know of…" Hank says. "We flew a large magnetic field, that is what shut down the controls, all you did was put a few marks on it."

As he says this, my eyes fall to the wing that took the lightning strike. The black enamel is burnt away, leaving what looks like a cigarette burn.

"Yeah, a few coats of paint and this baby will be as good as new," Warren says, slapping the side.

A loud crash of thunder shakes the ground and Ororo falls to her knees.

"What's wrong?" I ask, crouching down beside her.

"The elements. They are completely out of control! I cannot handle it!" she sobs, clenching her head in her hands.

"It'll be okay," I say softly, "what will put them back to normal?"

"Oblivion's death."

Bobby's eyes get wide, "can it be something that doesn't guarantee our death?"

"What is oblivion anyway? Like I know he's kind of Satan, but what exactly is he?" Angelica asks.

"Oblivion sometimes referred to as the Lord of the Outer Void, is a being that has been around since the beginning of time. He is basically nothingness, Negative matter lurking throughout the universe. Most of himself reside in an area known as the Outer Void, a dimension without any mass or matter. Anyone who enters it is oblivious to it, Unconscious until someone else pulls them out. Which does not happen often due to the whole oblivious thing. Now the Assassins has opened a portal to the Outer Void, Oblivion is escaping, gathering all his pieces from across the universe, and slowly turning it to dark matter," I say and I'm just as shocked as the rest.

"How did you know that?" Hank asks.

"You forgot to mention the part about his daughter who tried to seduce me like Simon did you," Bobby adds.

"Simon _seduced_ you?" Scott asks, looking livid towards me, "Like as in, seduced you into having…"

"I don't really remember," I say, once again, a thought of Simon in bed with me pops into my head.

"We'll deal with that later," Hank says, "Because right now we got to figure out a plan to close this portal."

To Be Continued

 **Author's notes: I got some extra time this weekend so I figured I'd get this chapter finished and up. I know it is shorter than usual, but the next chapter may take awhile to write. I hope you all enjoy and remember to comment to let me know! Again, I'm sorry that it is shorter, but I thought it was important to have this chapter on its own since the next will probably be very long and may not be up for a few weeks. xoxo!**


	15. Chapter 14

The weather continues to get worse, and so does Ororo. Her steady moans can be heard from the other side of the plane, where we try to make the plan.

We know that Oblivion is immortal, which means killing him is impossible, and since he doesn't seem to have an Achilles heel, we seemed pretty screwed. Every idea someone has seems to be put down as either impossible or unhelpful. It is the same question over and over again, _how do you kill something that isn't really there._

"Anything we plan is going to be suicide," Warren decides after twenty minutes of brainstorming pass and we still didn't have anything.

My head suddenly throbs and I flinch. _Fight me!_

I hear voices like I'm underwater, then I get a serious feeling of foreboding.

A cloaked figure forms in front of me. Flakes of flesh, no not flesh because flesh is only on human, and this being is not human, collect on the figure until limbs begin to form. _The most powerful mutants will fall at your hand, Miss Grey_ , _but I will not be one of them._ an indescribable voice speaks. _You will try, but you will fail._ Then the figure is completely formed and a bright white light shines out from the cloak like lightning.

"Jean!"

I'm laying on the ground. My breath is sparse, but not as sparse as the rest of the team, who are staring up at the brightly lit sky.

"Oblivion," I gasp. That was the figure I saw, and I know now what to do. "The only way to stop him is if I can telepathically fight him," I say.

"Are you out of your mind?" Scott yells.

A bolt of lightning strikes the ground only feet away, leaving a huge crater in the ground.

"No! It's the only way!" fear boils up in me.

"No."He says, "I already lost Alex, Jean, I can't lose you too," He is on the verge of tears.

"I'm sorry, Scott. I have to." Then with terror filling me, I allow my psychic projection leave my body and enter the portal to the Outer Void.

 _Oblivion! Stop this now!_

 _You are no match for me. You are simply mortal. Me? I am time. I am nightmares. I am Oblivion and I will not be stopped! I cannot be stopped!_

The cloaked figure lifts its hand and I falter. _No!_ I fight back, pushing myself further into the Void.

I latch onto Oblivion's mind and I find myself overwhelmed by the power. Everything feels strained as I fight to keep my grip. Then I push my Energy into him. Allowing all the things I've kept back escape flood from me and into him like a dam.

 _What is this? Emotions? Memories? I hold no such things. Be gone with you!_ once again I falter, It feels like I'm putting my entire self against something hot and not pulling away when my mind registers the pain. I'm definitely pushing myself over the maximum.

I send a ray of psychic energy towards him, but it bounces off a shield. What the…

Then I understand, I can't kill him, but I can imprison him. If I can break the psychic shield that is around him now, and trap him inside one of my own telepathy, I will stop him and hopefully also close the portal.

I get closer to the shield and blast it. This time it bounces off, but the shield weakens. I blast the area again, and a small hole forms but then close back up almost instantly. This was going to be tedious. I'll have to go around it pretty fast or send a big enough psychic blast that it destroys more than just a square centimeter.

 _You are no match for me. I do not know why you are even trying._

I gather all my energy into one blast. This had to work.

 _Do you underestimate me or are you just a fool?_

 _Shut up!_ I send the blast to the center of the field. It falls. Quickly I form energy around him, encasing him in my own pink aura.

Then everything goes black.

 **Scott's POV**

"What the hell?!" Warren gasps. He turns and looks streaks of light dance across the sky.

At the same time, I see Jean fall in my peripheral vision. "Jean?" I say turning to her.

No response.

She twitches slightly like she's having a nightmare. _Oh god._ I start over to her when a bolt of lightning strikes the ground a few feet away.

"The readings are off the scales!" Hank shouts over the wind, "these are unsafe living conditions. It should have fried us!"

"We have to stop Oblivion!" Bobby says, worry washing over his boyish face, making him look older than fourteen.

"Oblivion!" Jean says almost inaudibly, "The only way to stop him is if I can telepathically fight him."

The thought seemed impossible. There was no way that a fifteen-year-old could fight a being like Oblivion. He was pulling apart Earth's atmosphere, he would crush her like a fly.

"Are you out of your mind?" I ask.

Another bolt of lightning strikes the ground only feet away, leaving a huge crater in the ground.

"No! It's the only way!" She stares at the still smoking ground where the lightning hit.

"No."I say, unable to control it anymore "I already lost Alex, Jean, I can't lose you too," I've lost so much already. She's the closest to family I have left. I couldn't lose her. I wouldn't lose her.

"I'm sorry, Scott. I have to." her body goes limp against me.

"No!"

"What happened?" Warren asks, turning to me. His eyes get wide.

"She's fighting Oblivion," I say.

"She's what?!" Angelica commands.

"Fighting Oblivion," Hank repeats me, "Yes, of course. Her Psychic energy could counteract him."

"Isn't that kinda, you know, dangerous?" Warren asks.

"Yes. but she may be our only hope," Hank says. "We should continue this inside the jet." with that he scoops up Jean and carries her up the ramp.

The med bay of the plane is small. Too small in my opinion. Hank lays her down on the table. "Now all that is left is to wait," He states.

I sink in the chair beside her. Thunder still cracks and the ice has begun to fall again. I couldn't even imagine what she was doing to stop such a powerful being. Her chest rises and falls gently, but other than that she is still. Until her high-pitched scream echoes throughout the plane.

The rest rush in. But I pay no attention. I was too focused on the fact that Jean was floating. A pinkish aura surrounding her.

"Woah…" Bobby gasps.

Another scream. Then she crashes to the table and the glow that surrounded her stops. Blood spill from her nose and ears. Hank hurries over and puts his fingers to her neck. The weather outside stops, and through the open door, the sound of birds chirping can be heard. With a gasp Hank looks up, his eyes are wide. "She doesn't have a pulse."

The words were like a weight on my chest. I couldn't breathe and at the moment I couldn't even comprehend what those words meant. "Check again!" I command.

He shakes his head.

I push past the rest. I yearned not to feel. I yearned not to live. I stomp down the ramp "BRING HER BACK!" I yell. "Bring her back." I fall to my knees. This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening.

 **Jean's POV**

My eyes flicker open and a moan escapes my mouth. I'm in the Blackbird's med bay for sure. I hear quiet voices outside.

Hank whips around, "Jean!" He exclaims. "How do you feel?"

That was an interesting question. I felt like I was hit by a truck. Multiple times.

Warren comes in, "who are you talking… Oh my god, Jean!" He runs over and wrings my neck with a hug.

"Uh… hi." They're acting like I was gone for years. It couldn't have been that long. "What did I miss?"

"You died!" Warren says.

" _What?_ "

"You didn't have a pulse, Jean, Cyclops freaked out and burst from the plane. We are still waiting for him to come back."

Scott. I sit up and slide off the table.

"Don't you think that you should stay here?" Hank asks.

"I'm fine," I push past Warren and out onto the ramp.

Scott is sitting on the ground outside plane, his back up against one of the metal panels.

"They're waiting for you, you know," I say.

"I know."

"Then what are you waiting for?" I jump off the ramp and sit, Indian style, next to him.

He turns his head and his mouth drops open. "Jean!" Then he's embracing me, his breath is heavy and warm against my ear. "I thought I lost you," he whispers.

"So I've been told," I mumble.

" _Never_ do that again!" he breathes against my neck.

"No promises," I guide his lips towards mine.

"I love you." He whispers in between kisses.

"I love you too, Cyke."

To Be Continued.

 **Author's notes:So this went faster then I thought it would. it also did not end up how I was planning, but I am happy with it nevertheless. Let me know what you think! Only a few chapters left, so look forward to them, they are going to be !**


	16. Chapter 15

The plane ride home was awkward for a lack of a better term.

Bobby fell asleep over Berlin. Warren busied himself by poking Angelica's head through the slot of her headrest every chance he got. Ororo, who we insisted come with us, sits quietly behind me, and every few minutes, Scott would look back at me like he was making sure I was still here.

When we finally get to the mansion, I was relieved. We were home!

Everyone rushes from the plane, where Annie and the Professor meet us.

"Jean!" My vision is filled with bushy blond hair as Annie hugs me.

I spit some of her hair out, "Good to see you too…" I say.

"Do you mean that?" she asks, hopefully.

"Honestly, after fighting Oblivion, I'd be happy to see Senator Kelly." I say, "At least he's human."

"Did you really fight him one on one?" She asks.

"Don't remind me," I say.

She laughs, "It was that bad?"

"Well, since I apparently didn't have a pulse for a while, I'm going to say yeah, it wasn't good."

"But you did it!" That deserves some type of celebration!"

"I'm going to celebrate with my bed," I say, "I'm exhausted."

"Oh," she says in mock disappointment, "I thought we could go out for drinks or something."

"Yeah… no." I feel a wave of grief wash over me. It takes me a moment to realize that I was sensing Scott's.I watch him as he walks past the Professor towards the Elevator.

"I'll talk to you later," I say. I follow him and slip through the doors as they're closing.

"Are you okay?" I ask, hitting the stop button. The elevator jerks to a stop and a stand on my tiptoes and kisses him along his jaw. When I get to his lips, he kisses back, but absentmindedly.

"What do you need?" I ask.

He starts the elevator back up, "to be alone."

"Okay," I say softly.

We arrive on the first floor and I watch him as he exits.

* * *

I sleep for 12 hours. When I do wake up, my stomach hurts from hunger. I turn around and glance at the clock, it was 2:30. I roll out of bed and change into sweatpants, a long-sleeved t-shirt, and my worn out Converses. Then I make my way out down to the kitchen.

I'm pouring a bowl of cereal for myself when the Professor comes in. "Jean, I've been meaning to talk to you," He says.

"Hmm?"

"Angelica was telling me about the use of your powers." He rolls over to the counter and pours himself a cup of coffee, then comes to the table.

"Okay."

"You fought Oblivion on your own? May I ask how you accomplished that?" he stirs sugar into his mug and looks up at me.

"I don't know. I figured out a way to break the shield that surrounded him and then caught him in my own force field. It stopped him." I shrug and spoon fruity pebbled into my mouth.

"And Hank said you lost your pulse for over an hour."

An hour!? I thought at the most it was only a few minutes. "I did not know it was an hour, but yeah, that's what I heard. Oblivion was strong."

"Yes, Oblivion was so strong that when I tried to use Cerebro to find him, it fried the controls."

I gasp, "Then why didn't he fry me? Why would he let me win?"

"He didn't let you win, Jean, you were able to defeat him."

"Would you mind if I perhaps probed your mind?" He asks.

"Sure."

The next several minutes are spent with him searching through my memories from the past couple of days. If it was anyone else, I would have felt violated. But I knew I could trust the Professor.

When he is finished, I go back to eating my now soggy cereal.

"You have great power," The Professor says.

"Uh… thank?" I really had no idea what I was supposed to say to that.

"But even the most powerful psychic's can be lead astray on occasion." I knew instantly what, or more who, he was talking about. "At least he did not harm you in any way."

"Well, unless you count…"

He cuts me off, "He did nothing, Jean. Everything was mental. Nothing physical. It's possible that he ignored you until he needed information."

"I gave him information on us!" I moan. I had almost forgotten.

"And it died with him, as the rest of the Quiet Assassins will. Don't worry, Jean, I am sure Bobby gave just as much as you. You at least, by the looks of it, were able to control it slightly."

I push the rest of the cereal around the bottom of my bowl. All of the sudden I wasn't very hungry.

"Now I must come to the most unpleasant part of what I need to speak to you about. Your nightmares."

I gulp.

"Were any, by chance, the occasion that has past?"

"Yes."

"I feared that. And did you sense something was wrong before Alex was killed?"

I look down at the table, remembering how I cried before he died. Before I even thought that there was a possibility that he would die. I nod slowly.

"That, sadly, is the curse of being psychic," he says softly. "Well, I will leave you to finish your breakfast. I will be late tonight."

He begins to leave.

"Professor! Wait!" I'm finally getting up enough courage to ask him what I need to.

"Yes, Jean?"

"What about Scott?" I ask.

"He's already asked me to remove the memories of Alex.

"And did you?"

"No. I wouldn't."

"He's just… he's hurting, Professor, and I don't know what to do. With Annie, I blocked out everyone. I wouldn't let anyone help me and it ended up hurting me and my coping. I just don't want him to be like that."

He turns around. "Scott, of all people, knows how to cope with death. What he needs is time, Jean. I'm sure he appreciates your concern, but his brother's death is still so fresh, so raw. You should know how that is like. Be patient. He'll come around. Now I must really go. By the way, you eight can order takeout. It's up to you where you get it." he smiles and exits the kitchen. Leaving me with more questions than answers.

* * *

Scott doesn't join us for dinner that night. Or any meals the next day. I hadn't seen him at all since the day we got back. So that night after we go up to bed, I check on him.

He doesn't respond when I knock the first time.

"Scott?" I call.

"Come in," his voice sounds weak.

I open the door and my eyes take a moment to adjust to the pitch black room. "Scott, are you okay?" I ask. He's sitting on his bed. Only in a pair of pajama pants and his glasses. His hair is sticking in all directions and he has a small amount of stubble.

"I guess," he mumbles.

I sit on the edge of his rumpled, red plaid cladded, bed. I grab his hand with mine.

"Do you need anything?"

"No."

"I know your lying." I say, "I can sense it. What is it?"

"I've lost everyone," He says.

"I know." I scoot closer and hug him.

"I just wish I could just forget him. Not forget everything, just what happened in the past couple of days, you know?" he stops.

"I understand. I know exactly how it is."

"And we left him." He sighs, "we left him to rot."

"Scott…"

"All to fight a being that wanted to destroy the have to ask, was it worth it?"

"Scott… I don't,"

"You know what. I don't care anymore." he says angrily, "please leave now. I need to get some sleep."

"Scott..."

"Please leave."

"Okay." I stand up and make my way to the door.

"Wait, Jean!" he calls.

I spin around, "what?"

"I love you."

I smile. "Love you too. Good night."

* * *

Later that week I'm sitting outside, studying.

Bobby comes out and he seems almost in tears. His lower lip wobbles and he keeps blinking. "What's wrong?" I ask.

"S-she's leaving." he says.

"Who?"

"Annie. She's leaving."

My heart beats in my throat and I run past him and into the school, leaving my books on the bench.

I find Annie in the Lounge. She has a small bag slung over her shoulder, and in a conversation with the Professor. When I come through the door, they stop abruptly.

"You're leaving?" I ask.

She nods, "I don't belong here. I'm a cyborg, not a mutant."

"You said you were a Technopath!"

"I am. Just… I can't stay here. I've seen too much in the world. The universe. Things that you wouldn't even imagine.'

"Like what?"

"Cosmic forces. Some even more powerful than Oblivion. Some who will destroy entire star systems just to appease their appetites. I couldn't pull you guys into it. You'll face it eventually. And besides, you have enough to worry about now."

"If we're going to have to face them eventually, then why are you leaving? I mean, it's obvious that Bobby is in love with you, and the rest of the team seem to like you. So why?"

"I just have to, Jeannie. And maybe one day we'll meet again. But for now, goodbye." She pushes past me and leaves the room. I stare at where she used to be. Then I start out the door.

"Oh, and Jean," The Professor calls. "I was wondering if you could help Ororo on her homework. She seems to be really struggling."

"Sure thing," I say.

* * *

"And a equals what?" I ask.

Ororo stares down at the algebra problem. Her white hair in her mouth, "five?" she asks.

"No. Okay, if a plus three equals sixteen minus four, what would sixteen minus for equal?"

"Twelve?"

"Correct. So what is three minus twelve?"

"Nine?"

Right! So a equals what?"

Before she could give the answer, Bobby bursts into the common room. A huge smile is washed across his face and his eyes are glossed over. Much more of an improvement than the last time I saw him.

"What's up?" I ask.

"She kissed me!"

"Huh?"

"Annie! She kissed me! On the Lips! She loves me!" He falls back in a chair with a smug look.

I can't help but laugh. Ororo, however, get's in such a giggle fit that she almost falls off the chair.

Well, at least someone got something good out of this situation.

To Be Continued...

 **Author's notes: Hello! what do you think of it? the only thing left is an epilogue to tie everything together. I know there was a lot of conversation, but I hope you still enjoyed it.**

 **Also, I got the idea for the elevator scene from the first Star Trek movie, so yeah. Comments are still always welcome :)**


	17. Epilogue

**Six Months Later**

I stare down at my sandals. There was a breeze surrounding the pavilion, and the sun was hidden behind the clouds. I was getting goosebumps in my strapless dress.

"...I and I will always love you," Paul finishes his vows and I see my mom wipe a tear from her eye. The rest of the guests sniff as my sister starts her own. I wasn't sure if they were crying because the wedding was so touching or if the cold air was making their noses run.

"Dearest Paul…" My sister begins and I had to muffle a laugh. My mom glares at me and my fellow bridesmaid, Stefanie, raises her eyebrows. What was wrong with me?

The ceremony ends and pain prickles throughout my head. I was itching to use my powers. Last night when we were decorating my mom told me off for hanging balloons with telekinesis. She said that since Paul's family was here, and they don't know about my 'little secret' that I was not permitted to use it. Paul's little sister Megan, stayed in my room last night, so I couldn't even talk to Scott normally when we were Skyping. Apparently, there would be the chance of ruining my sister's happiness if I let it slip that I was a mutant.

Or course, half of my dad's side has disowned me because of it. Let's just say that the battle at the prison was broadcasted on the news and the X-Men are now considered terrorists. So that's a thing. I'm just waiting for a civil war between the families to break out because of me.

We walk across the muddy lawn to the barn where the reception is (Paul's family owns a farm). The music blares from the open doors and by the time we're twenty feet away it's giving me a headache. When we get inside it is a muddle of people finding seats and getting cups of punch. I settle at the bridal table. I was not in the mood to deal with my over-excited family, who, being on my mom's side, have not disowned me. One of my great aunts even asked me how the development of my powers was coming along like it was some normal thing. If Paul's family doesn't find out about me by the end of the day it'll be some miracle.

I stare down at my mashed potatoes and roasted chicken. Even if I was with my family, I felt homesick. I missed being with _my_ people. I hadn't realized how far apart I had grown from my parents in the past five years until yesterday. Sure I come every Christmas and talk to them on the phone, but I didn't even know they remodeled the house until a few days ago when I couldn't find the bathroom.

I get tempted to try talking to Scott psychically, but with my dad's sister glaring at me from overtop her glasses every few seconds, I figure I better not risk it.

After multiple kisses, Paul gets up from the table to talk to his family and Sara turns to me. "So, how you've been?" she asks.

"Okay."

"So did you and Wings fall in love?" she asks. It takes me a minute to remember that Wings was Warren.

"No."

"Who were you talking to last night then?"

"Scott. He was the other one, the one with the glasses."

"Oh, yeah I remember. he was kinda cute."

I roll my eyes.

"Anyway, I should be getting over to Paul." she stands up and gathering the hem of her flowy dress, she leaves the table.

After Oblivion's attack, everyone changed. Hank began studying vigorously about cosmic forces with the help of Warren, who hacked into the S.H.I.E.L.D. database for him. Bobby hit puberty full on, but with that he became selective with his social time, spending much time in his room when he's not in classes or at meals. Ororo adjusts to the life of a student, with my and Hank's help of course. And about a month later Scott starting being his old self again. He still yells his brother's name out in his sleep, but no one says anything. After the ordeal, everyone has nightmares. Mine, however, aren't about oblivion or the outer void, Mine are mostly about space and supernovae. I don't know what that means yet, But I'm not going to worry about it. Not yet, anyway.

Sara and Paul share their first dance, then my mom kneels next to my seat, "Your hair is falling down," she the starts pulling bobby pins out and stabbing them back in.

"Mom!" I moan.

"Does it ever lay flat?"

I pull away from her reach.

"Jean! Fine! Go up to the bathroom and fix it yourself."

"Does it matter?" I ask grumpily.

"It is your sister wedding. It damn right matters."

"Fine," I mumble, then march from the barn.

Already the sun was going down. I try to wrap my dress tighter around myself so that I don't freeze in the crisp Autumn air. I just get to the yard and I hear a "Pssst." I turn around frantically to see Scott waving towards me from behind bushes.

"What the…" I can't pretend I'm not happy to see him, but him being here probably means something bad is happening.

"Robots," he says, "mutant hunting robots released by the government."

"Wait, what?"

"They call them Sentinels. And they're ripping the west coast apart."

"What do we need to do?" I ask.

He hesitates, "Aren't you suppose to be at your sister's wedding?"

"I'd rather fight robots."

He smiles, "fair enough. Shall we go?"

"I should probably tell my mom that I'm leaving. I'll be back."

"You should wear dresses more often, you look nice!" Scott calls as I walk away.

The barn was still just as crowded as it was when I left. It takes me a while to find my mom. When I do she's talking to my dad's cousin, who turns his nose up towards me when I get too close.

"Mom…"

"You were supposed to be fixing your hair! What did you do while you were gone?"

Then I come to the fun time where I try to convince my mom to let me go fight when I should be staying at my sister's wedding.

"There's an emergency at the school," I begin.

"What kind of emergency would involve a fifteen-year-old?" she snaps, obviously getting what I was implying.

"It doesn't involve a fifteen-year-old, Mom, it involves mutants."

Two cousins come over to tell my mom goodbye and she gets distracted. I wait for her to finish chatting.

"Jeannie!" the one says, hugging me. "I didn't recognize you! I haven't seen you since you were toddling around your Aunt Beth's house! I bet you don't even remember me!" She got that right, I don't remember her. Which is why hugging her was so awkward. She laughs and walks away. "Goodbye, you two."

My mom waves and turns to me again, "what were you saying."

"I have to go."

"Jean, it's your sister's wedding."

"And half of the guests would celebrate if I left," I say, grumpily.

"That isn't…" she pauses, "Okay, do whatever you want. We'll save you some cake."

"Really?" I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Not only is she letting me, but she's even offering to save cake for me.

"Don't make me change my mind."

"Yes. Bye, mom. I'll be back." Even if it's just for the cake.

I push my way through the crowd again. Scott's waiting for me outside.

"Sorry I took so long," I say, "Cousins that I didn't know wanted hugs."

"The horror," He says with a laugh, "come on, the Sentinels have traveled to the South Dakota."

"Oh yay, snow and robots. My favorite things," I say sarcastically.

And we go fight Sentinels. But that, my dears, is another story.

 **The End**

 **Author's notes: *takes deep breath* after 164 pages and over 37,000 words of fanfiction I thought I was going to break Google Docs. lol. I really hope you all enjoyed my story. There will be, most definitely, be a sequal eventually. Probably after school starts back up because oddly I have more time to write during the school year then throughout the summer. if you have any ideas, I'd love to hear them. I'm thinking something to do with the Phoenix and Shi'ar, but I'm still sort of on the fence about it.**

 **If you caught them, I did have some nods towards the Phoenix Force. I have a very old piece about it that I wrote after watching the second movie, but it's very poorly written and has a lot of plot holes. I kind of reread it as a reminder of what NOT to do. I just don't want to do something like that and have it terrible, lol. Also, I tend to write myself into a corner, hints the reason for my absense for like 10 days. I just wasn't feeling inspired to write. but I got a second wind and finally got this story finished! again I hope you enjoyed it, and if there was anything I could have done better, I would love to hear it. as always Comments are welcome and I appreciate them so so much! and for the last time for this story, Cheers!**


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